AUBURN, Ala. – In the 30 years since Arkansas joined the Southeastern Conference for the 1991-92 basketball season, the Razorbacks have never hosted the No. 1 team.
Until now.
Next Game:
Arkansas
Feb. 8, 2022
6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
"I'm very proud of the fact that it's Auburn," Tigers coach Bruce Pearl said. "Proud of our league and proud of my team."
Both teams bring impressive streaks into Tuesday's tussle. Auburn has won 19 games in a row and is 7-0 on the road this season while the Razorbacks have won eight straight and are 13-1 at home.
"We're 5-23 over there at Arkansas, but we've been competitive over there the last few times we've gone," Pearl said, referencing a 75-73 Razorback victory last season and Auburn's 79-76 overtime win in 2020. "Bud Walton (Arena) will be on fire. We know we've got a great opportunity."
After Saturday's 74-72 win at Georgia, Pearl cut short Sunday's practice, wanting to hasten his team's recovery after guards Wendell Green Jr. and K.D. Johnson played extra minutes in the absence of Zep Jasper, who's recovering from illness.
"That's how you keep them fresh, both physically and mentally," Pearl said. "The kids are going six days a week. We've been going since May and the kids work so hard in their training. At some point, you've got to catch that second wind. The way you do that is by changing it up a little bit."
No. 1 Auburn will try to slow down the SEC's leading scorer, JD Notae (18.7 points per game), when the Tigers play at Arkansas Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2. Andy Burcham and Sonny Smith will call the action on the Auburn Sports Network.
PLAYER TO WATCH: JABARI SMITH
A top NBA prospect, freshman Jabari Smith leads Auburn in scoring with 15.3 points per game and is second in rebounds with 6.7 per game, good for seventh and eighth, respectively, in the SEC. Smith is coming off just his fourth game this season where he did not score in double digits, but the three previous times it happened, he responded with 20 or more points in the next game. He is averaging 22.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.7 steals in the three games after posting single-digit games.
INSIDE THE SERIES: ARKANSAS
Arkansas leads the all-time series, 35-20, including a 22-5 advantage in Fayetteville. The two programs have split the last four games in the series with Arkansas owning a current two-game winning streak. Auburn's last win in Fayetteville came on Feb., 2020 when the Tigers pulled out a 79-76 win in overtime. Samir Doughty scored a team-high 23 points and was one of five Auburn players in double figures.