AUBURN, Ala. – After a missed opportunity Wednesday night, the No. 7 Auburn basketball team has a short turnaround as it welcomes another quality team to Auburn Arena Saturday afternoon in perennial NCAA Tournament and Ohio Valley Conference favorite Murray State.
"We're coming into this game expecting it to be a dog fight," guard Samir Doughty said. "We're hungry and we just lost. This should be a good game. We want to play good competition every night so we can expose certain things and get better."
The Racers come into the matchup at 8-1 and have accumulated 34 wins since the start of the 2017-18 season - a mark that is among the elite in college basketball.
Auburn and Murray State met in a thriller last year with the Tigers emerging victorious, 81-77. As a team, Auburn made three of its last four shots and went 4-for-4 from the foul line in the final 45 seconds.
"I remember it was a really good game," forward Chuma Okeke said. "It was a dog fight. [Murray State] had a good crowd. It was a really close game, back-and-forth.
"I feel like it's going to be the same way this game, going to come down to the last few minutes of the game. Whichever team plays smarter and plays harder, that's the team that's going to win."
The Tigers recently had their 5-game winning streak halted at the hands of NC State Wednesday night, 78-71, after committing a season-high 25 turnovers.
The quick turnaround may prove to be a bright spot for Auburn as it turns its focus to the next opponent.
"We're going to come in [to Auburn Arena] Saturday afternoon and play harder," Okeke said. "Coming off a loss like that, there's nothing we can do. We've just got to go out there and play harder."
Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. CT inside Auburn Arena on Saturday. Rod Bramblett and Sonny Smith will have the radio call on 93.9 Tiger FM, online at AuburnTigers.com and on the TuneIn app. The game will also be televised on SEC Network with Roy Philpott and Sean Harrington on the call.
Shuttle service shut down
Fans who park in the facilities management lot will not have a shuttle for the final two games in December due to winter break. The shuttle will resume Jan. 12 when Auburn hosts Georgia.
Player to watch: J'Von McCormick
Junior point guard J'Von McCormick had his best game of his career in an Auburn uniform on the road against NC State. In just 17 minutes, the New Orleans, La. native poured in 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor. He also dished out three assists to go along with three steals and two rebounds. McCormick netted a plus-3 rating off the bench fo the Tigers.
Inside the series: Murray State
Auburn is 4-1 all-time against Murray State, including an 81-77 win at Murray State last season. Four Tigers scored in double figures including 17 points from Jared Harper, with 11 in the final four minutes, and 15 from Bryce Brown. The Tigers have won two straight in the series winning 75-67 on Nov. 23, 2013, at Auburn Arena. Auburn won the first meeting between the two teams 86-72 as part of the 1996 Mulligan Holiday Hoopfest in Birmingham, Ala. The Tigers defeated the Racers 72-53 on Dec. 14, 2002, in Auburn. Murray State's lone win in the series in the 2012 Charleston Classic in Charleston, S.C.
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl is 3-0 in his head coaching career against Murray State, including 1-0 at Auburn. Tennessee defeated the Racers 64-53 in Nashville, Tenn., on Nov. 30, 2005, in Pearl's first season with the Volunteers. The next season Tennessee won 89-64 over Murray State on Dec. 1, 2006, in Knoxville, Tenn.
An early Christmas present?
Auburn is looking to win 10 games before Christmas for the sixth time in program history (1995, 1998, 1999, 2016, 2017) and the third straight season for the first time ever.
No. 7 Tigers look to bounce back in stiff test against Murray State
