Nov. 15, 2017
Auburn vs. Indiana State
(2017-18 RECORD: 1-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. (2017-18 RECORD: 1-0, 0-0 MVC)
Schedule
| Thu, Nov 16 | 10:30 a.m. |
AUBURN, Ala. - Fresh off a victory in the season opener at home, the Auburn men's basketball team hits the road for the first time this season. The Tigers head to Charleston, S.C. for the 2017 Gildan Charleston Classic.
Auburn opens the annual tournament against Indiana State at 10:30 a.m. CT on ESPNU. The Tigers will face either Old Dominion or Temple in the second round. Auburn is also joined in the eight-team tournament by Clemson, Dayton, Hofstra and Ohio in the bottom half of the bracket.
Rod Bramblett and Sonny Smith will have the radio call all week on 93.9 Tiger FM, online at www.AuburnTigers.com and on the TuneIn app.
Auburn is set to compete in its 75th non-conference tournament in program history. The Tigers are a combined 91-75 in non-conference tournament games and have captured 20 tournament titles with the most recent coming in 2002 at the San Juan Shootout.
Auburn put up 100 points in the season opener for the fourth time under head coach Bruce Pearl. Before Pearl arrived, the Tigers had not reached triple figures since Nov. 29, 2003 against Grambling State (105). Auburn first accomplished the feat in the third game under Pearl, snapping a streak of 339 games.
Player to Watch: Desean Murray
Desean Murray made his first game in an Auburn uniform a memorable one as the junior touted 13 points and also paced the team with seven rebounds. The Presbyterian College transfer went 5-of-7 from the field and 3-of-3 from the charity stripe. Murray also dished out three assists and had two steals in 23 minutes of play as a forward.
Pre-Game Quotes: Coach Pearl
"Rebounding has been an area that we have worked on and we've talked about a couple of things. We talked about our defense, we talked about transition defense, we talked about rebounding and free throw shooting. Those are four primary areas that we felt like we had to improve on in order to be successful. I think that we have had the right focus in that area, but we have to rebound as a team. We don't have a dominant 10-rebound-a-game guy. We have to do it by committee. I think our guards have to do a better job of perimeter check outs and not letting guards run to the boards. But rebounding is one way to be able to end possessions and I thought we rebounded the ball pretty well against Norfolk State. They were spread out. Indiana State will put a little bit more pressure on us to rebound the ball, but it's definitely been a focus."
"[Norfolk State] beat us twice on the full-court press. It's risk-reward. For us, we extend over 94 feet. We do play nine or ten guys. We want to wear people down. It won't be a big factor the first night against Indiana State. But maybe it will be a factor in the second game or the third game. We are definitely extending and sometimes you may not notice a turnover, but if we can get a different guard to bring the ball up the floor and after they get done breaking our pressure, they only have 22 seconds to shoot, we have accomplished something as well as making them work to get it in and getting their offense established."
Pre-Game Quotes: Horace Spencer
"When we come out positive in rebounds, we can beat anybody I feel like, because rebounding is a big part of the game, and on the defensive end we won't give up second-chance shots."
An Auburn Win Would...
An Auburn win would give the Tigers a 2-0 start, what would be their 11th perfect start after two games since 2000. Auburn started 2-0 last season with wins over North Florida and Georgia State.
The Tigers would also improve to 21-17 in games played in South Carolina. With a win, Auburn would also improve to 12-5 in games played in the Palmetto State since 2000.
On This Date
On Nov. 16, 1998, Auburn doubled-up Florida A&M, 94-47, on the front end of a 17-game winning streak to open the 1998-99 season. The Tigers went on to win the SEC with a 14-2 record in league play and capped the year at 29-4 in the Sweet 16.
Auburn has played on Nov. 16 five times in program history and currently stands at 4-1 in those contests. The most recent affair on Nov. 16 came in 2012 against the College of Charleston in the Charleston Classic. The Tigers took the result 55-51.
Inside the Series: Indiana State
The Tigers and Sycamores are set to battle for the first time in series history Thursday. Auburn is, however, 4-2 against current members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The Tigers have beaten Bradley (twice), Missouri State and Southern Illinois. The most recent matchup came in 2009 against Missouri State.
Scouting the Sycamores
Indiana State, picked to finish eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference, took down in-state foe Indiana, 90-69. In that game, the Sycamores shot a blistering 65 percent from downtown (17-of-26) and had five players in double figures. Guard Brenton Scott took home MVC Player of the Week honors after he scored 24 points and contributed two assists with one steal. Jordan Barnes also tallied 18 points and had four assists in the road win.
Indiana State is 80-9 when holding teams to 63 points or less under the eight-year reign of head coach Greg Lansing, including 18-0 when limiting opponents to 53 or fewer points.