AUBURN, Ala. – When Auburn hosts Ole Miss on Saturday, sophomore Devan Cambridge will likely be the first player off the bench for the Tigers.
Would he like to be in the starting lineup? Sure. He started the first 11 games this season. But when Sharife Cooper became eligible prior to the Alabama game on Jan. 9, Cambridge went to the coaching staff and willingly gave up his spot as a starter for his teammate. He knew it would be better for him, better for Cooper and ultimately better for the team.
"Sharife just continued to work," Cambridge said. "Me personally, I probably would've broken down. I probably would've left. But he stayed committed, he stayed to Auburn, and I just felt like he deserved to play.
"And with him playing, I knew it was going to be a different ball game. I knew my minutes weren't going to decrease or anything. It was just me coming off the bench, and when I'm playing with him, he makes me better, I make him better. He can throw me passes, I'm going to run the floor – we make each other better. So I was willing to do that."
In the eight games since Cambridge moved to the bench, he's scored in double figures in six of them. As a starter, he scored in double figures just three times in the first 11 games. He's averaging 9.8 points per game off the bench – the best stretch of his Auburn career to this point.
But while some might believe that his elevated play is a product of his role changing, he knows it has much more to do with Cooper's return and his own development than it does him coming off the bench.
"With Sharife, we have that type of chemistry," Cambridge said. "He sees plays before they happen. I would run the break before, and I wouldn't get it. I know if I run the floor now, I'm going to get the ball. I do that every time to get those easy transition buckets. Or even with catch-and-shoot 3s, he's going to find me.
"I don't know how to really explain it, but it's nothing about any position that I'm put in. I'm just playing better, I'm working hard on my game. It's a new me."
Auburn lost to Ole Miss earlier this season. It was the last game Cambridge started, and he had four points. He believes the second go-around will be different. Not only because he'll be coming off the bench but because the Tigers will have Cooper, the player he gave up his starting spot for.
Saturday's game is scheduled to tip off at 3 p.m. CT from Auburn Arena. Andy Burcham and Paul Ellen 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 ESPN2 with Beth Mowins and Dalen Cuff on the call.
Player to Watch: Jaylin Williams
In the first matchup with Ole Miss, Jaylin Williams had a career game with 24 points on 7-of-14 from the floor, including 6-of-10 from beyond the arc. Over his last four games, Williams has reached double figures three times and is averaging 14.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. In that same span, the Nahunta, Ga. native is shooting 60 percent from the floor (24-of-40).
Inside the Series: Ole Miss
The Tigers and Rebels meet for the second time this season and 140th time in series history Saturday afternoon. Auburn leads the overall series at 77-63.
After dropping 10 straight games to the Rebels from 2012 to 2017, the Tigers have won four of the last seven duels in the annual home-and-home matchup.
Auburn is 51-16 at home against Ole Miss all-time, but the Rebels hold a 5-4 advantage in games played at Auburn Arena. The Tigers have won two of the last three on The Plains, including last year's 67-58 victory – highlighted by Austin Wiley's double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Devan Cambridge chipped in with eight points.
Bruce Pearl is 9-10 against Ole Miss all-time with four of those wins coming as Auburn's head coach. Pearl is 9-4 against Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis, including a 7-1 mark when Davis was leading Middle Tennessee.
80-Piece
Auburn has been one of the top offensive teams in college basketball over the last several years. The Tigers have eclipsed the 80-point plateau 96 times under head coach Bruce Pearl, which is the 18th-most in college basketball since the 2014-15 season.
Since the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign, Auburn has scored over 80 points in a game 62 times in 124 games (50 percent). That mark is the sixth-best in the country in that span and is second among major college basketball teams behind only Duke. The Tigers have reached 80 points nine times this season, including five times in the last eight games.
‘A new me’: Devan Cambridge takes off in new role
