AUBURN, Ala. – "This will be as good as it gets all year long."
That is how Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl signed off from his Zoom press conference Monday. He was referring to his team's SEC opener against LSU on Wednesday night.
Next Game:
LSU
Dec. 28, 2021
6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
How good is the matchup? Auburn, ranked No. 11 in the latest AP poll, comes in winners of eight in a row. LSU, ranked No. 16, is one of five teams yet to lose this season. It will be just the second game between teams ranked in the top 16 of the AP Top 25 in the 12-year history of Auburn Arena.
Defensively, both squads are elite. Auburn is ranked No. 10 defensive efficiency having only allowed one team to score more than 70 points this season. LSU is tops in the nation in defensive efficiency, holding opponents to 54.1 points per game.
"What makes them so good defensively is they've got great length and great athletes," Pearl said. "They press over 94 feet, they do a lot of trapping. Deflections, strips and rips, really active hands, great ball pressure. The other thing they do is unlike almost any team in the country they switch everything. It's very effective, especially when you have big, long guards."
Offensively, Auburn has scored 70 or more points in each of its last seven games and is averaging 80. 3 points per game at home this season. Led by the backcourt trio of Wendell Green Jr., Zep Jasper and K.D. Johnson, the Tigers are leading the SEC in fewest turnovers per game (10.7) and second in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.49).
So when Pearl says the matchup between Auburn (11-1) and LSU (12-0) will be as good as it gets, he's not wrong. The winner has an early leg up in the race for the SEC title.
The two sides will tip off Wednesday at 6 p.m. CT from Auburn Arena. Andy Burcham and Sonny Smith will have the radio call on 93.9 Tiger FM and online at AuburnTigers.com, and the game will also be televised on ESPN2 with Richard Cross and Joe Kleine on the call.
PLAYER TO WATCH: WENDELL GREEN JR.
Sophomore guard Wendell Green Jr. registered his second career double-double 13 points and career-high 10 rebounds in Auburn's 71-58 win over Murray State last week. It marked his fourth straight game in double figures. Green was 4 of 7 from the field, and his halfcourt shot to beat the shot clock in the second half made ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays. He's third on the team in scoring (11.8 points per game) and leads the team with 57 assists.
INSIDE THE SERIES: LSU
LSU leads the all-time series with Auburn, 87-70, and won the last matchup between the two sides – a 104-80 victory in Baton Rouge last February. However, Auburn has won four of the last six meetings coming into Wednesday night, including a 91-90 overtime thriller on Feb. 8, 2020, where J'Von McCormick made a game-winning shot.
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl is 11-7 all-time against LSU.
FAMILY TIES
Jabari Smith is one of the top freshmen in the country, averaging a team-best 16.2 points per game. His father, Jabari Smith Sr., played at LSU for two seasons from 1998 to 2000 where he averaged 17.3 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. He was also a two-time All-SEC selection in 1999 (Third Team) and 2000 (Second Team).
Smith Sr. was selected 45th overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2000 NBA Draft. He also played for the New Jersey Nets and Philadelphia 76ers.
AUTLIVE CANCER SHIRTS ON SALE
The annual AUTLIVE Cancer game will be Feb. 12, 2022, against Texas A&M, but this year's AUTLIVE t-shirts will be on sale Wednesday night in Auburn Arena. The Bruce Pearl Family Foundation and volunteers will sell the shirts in the Scholarship Entrance while the team shop will sell shirts at the Main Entrance. Shirts are also on-sale at AUTLIVE.com.