AUBURN, Ala. - Playing a talent-laden opponent in an historic venue creates a golden opportunity for Auburn.
"That's kind of like a bucket list thing," said Auburn coach Bruce Pearl of the Tigers' Saturday 12:30 p.m. CT game vs. Kentucky at Rupp Arena. "To coach there, to play there, it's a pretty cool deal."
Auburn nearly knocked off the No. 4 Wildcats (22-4, 11-2) in Auburn Arena, falling 82-80 on Jan. 19.
"Kentucky is the best defensive team in our league," Pearl said. "They're one of the most physical teams in the country. Clearly defense and rebounding, if we can do a better job than the last time in that area, and not shoot ourselves out of it by going crazy 3-ball happy, and execute."
CBS will televise Saturday's matchup, Auburn's second broadcast on the network in the Pearl era.
"It's good for our program to be able to be on the national stage," Pearl said. "But our focus is more the process: what do we need to do given the fact that we're playing against a great defensive team with a player of the year candidate (PJ Washington) in their building? What do we need to do to win?"
That CBS believes Auburn (18-8, 7-6) is competitive enough to merit the national broadcast indicates how far the Tigers' program has progressed in Pearl's five seasons on the Plains.
"We might be going on the road to play the best team in the country right now, at a tough place to play," Pearl said. "And we're going up thinking we have a chance to compete, which is a really positive thing. We have enough pieces, and we have enough to know what we need to do, now the question is can we do it? But at least we've got a chance."
The game will be carried on the 93.9 Tiger FM, online at AuburnTigers.com and on the TuneIn app with Rod Bramblett and Sonny Smith on the call. Ian Eagle and Jim Spanarkel will describe the action on CBS.
Player to watch: Bryce Brown
The last two games against Kentucky have been memorable for Bryce Brown. Last year, the Stone Mountain, Ga. native played through a shoulder injury and dropped 18 points, willing Auburn to an 76-66 victory. Earlier this season, the senior caught fire as he poured in 25 of his game-high 28 points in the second half on 8-of-9 shooting, including 6-of-7 from 3-point land.
Inside the series: Kentucky
Auburn trails Kentucky 93-19 all-time, but the two teams have split the last four games in the series, including #12 Kentucky's 82-80 victory at #14 Auburn on Jan. 19.
Kentucky leads 47-2 in games played at Kentucky, including a 27-2 mark at Rupp Arena. The Wildcats have won 16 straight games in the series in games played at Kentucky since Auburn's last win at Rupp Arena, a 53-52 decision on Jan. 9, 1988, when John Caylor nailed a 3-pointer with 10 seconds remaining to lift Auburn to a 53-52 victory over the No. 1 Wildcats
Defense standing tall
The Tigers are not only one of the top offensive teams in the country, but Auburn has held nine opponents to under 60 points this season, including three under 50, after allowing under 60 points just twice all of last season (34 games). The Tigers are tied for third in the SEC allowing 67.4 points per game, an improvement of 5.8 points per game from last season. Auburn, who is also third in the SEC averaging 81.6 points per game, is one of only two SEC teams ranked in the top 3 of the league in scoring offense and scoring defense, along with Tennessee.
Auburn has held its last seven opponents to 28.9 percent shooting from 3-point range (50-of-173). Eighteen times this season Auburn has held an opponent to under its scoring average entering the game, including each of the last seven games. Twelve times the Tigers have held an opponent to more than 10 points under its season average.
Finding the groove
Auburn is 5-2 in its last seven games after the Tigers dropped four of its first six SEC games. The best records in the SEC during that period belong to Kentucky (6-1), Tennessee (6-1), Auburn (5-2) and LSU (5-2).