Auburn used a big first-half run to propel its way past visiting Grambling State 63-45 on Friday evening.

Up by just one point in the early going, Auburn (6-7) used a 22-2 surge to build a 36-12 cushion with 41 seconds left before intermission. Kenny Gabriel scored 10 of his team-best 17 points during the blitz.

Tommie Raschard Boatner scored 16 of his game-high 21 points after halftime for Grambling State (2-10), which rallied briefly but could get no closer than 14.

Gabriel added 12 rebounds for Auburn, which also got 14 points and nine boards from Earnest Ross.

Auburn, which wraps its non-conference schedule against Florida State on Monday, shot just 36.2 percent from the floor and hit only 3 of 14 from beyond the arc, but held Grambling to 32.7 percent shooting while forcing 23 turnovers.