» Riding a three-game win streak, Auburn (8-2) welcomes Alabama State (4-6) to Neville Arena for one final test before the holiday break.
» The Tigers will enjoy four days off, prior to returning back to campus to close out non-conference play against Chattanooga on Dec. 30 and Penn on Jan. 2.
» A win on Friday night would give the Tigers their 50th-consecutive home win over a non-conference opponent.
Next Game:
vs. Alabama State
Dec. 22, 2023
7 p.m. CT
TV: SEC Network+
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
» With its 16-point win over USC on Dec. 17, all eight of Auburn's wins this season have come by at least 15 points and have been by an average of 21.5 points.
» Auburn has used a balanced attack this season as the Tigers have 10 players averaging over 15 minutes per game. AU has had three games, including the last two, where 11 players scored and 10 Tigers have scored in double figures at least once this season.
» For the first time since 2015, the Tigers have posted single-digit turnover totals in three-straight games. In that stretch, Auburn's back court duo of Aden Holloway and Tre Donaldson have combined to average 26.0 points on 54.9 percent shooting from the floor and 46.2 percent from 3-point range and 7.7 assists with a total of just three turnovers.
» Graduate senior forward Jaylin Williams is 17 points away from 1,000 career points, while senior guard K.D. Johnson is five points away from the same milestone.
THE BUZZ ON ALABAMA STATE
» Alabama State head coach Tony Madlock, who is in his second season with the Hornets, previously spent four seasons as an assistant coach on The Plains under Tony Barbee from 2010-14.
» Auburn is the fifth power conference opponent Alabama State has played this season including LSU and Ole Miss. The Hornets have also played Iowa (Big Ten) and USC (Pac-12). In addition to five power conference opponents, ASU played Memphis, currently ranked No. 23 in the country, and closes the calendar year at South Florida on Dec. 29.
» The Hornets return their top two scorers from last season in Isaiah Range (14.0 ppg last season) and TJ Madlock (11.2 ppg last season). Range and Harris are two of four double-figure scorers ASU has this season – Madlock (16.2 ppg), D'Ante Bass (16.0 ppg), Range (12.2 ppg) and CJ Hines (12.0 ppg).
SERIES HISTORY
» Auburn holds a 5-0 advantage in the all-time series with Alabama State having last met the Hornets (W, 94-78) on Dec. 22, 2009, in Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum.
» Four of the previous five games have been played in Auburn with the lone exception being a 63-60 decision at Alabama State on Nov. 16, 2007, in Montgomery.
» This is Alabama State's first game inside of Neville Arena. It is also the third-straight game in the series that has been played on Dec. 22.
AUBURN IN KENPOM RANKINGS
» Auburn is No. 7 in the latest KenPom Rankings and one of just six teams in the country ranked in the Top 20 of KenPom's adjusted offensive efficiency and adjusted defensive efficiency, next to Arizona, BYU, UConn, Houston and Purdue.
» The last 21 national champions have all finished in the Top 39 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. Each of them have been in the Top 39 in offensive efficiency and the Top 22 in defensive efficiency. Historically, all but two have finished in the Top 20 in both categories.
Team Offense Defense
Arizona 6 2
Auburn 12 17
BYU 14 9
UConn 3 19
Houston 16 1
Purdue 2 12
DYNAMIC DUO
» Over the last three games versus Indiana, UNC Asheville and USC combined, Auburn's point guard duo of Aden Holloway and Tre Donaldson have averaged 26.0 points per game on 54.9 percent shooting from the floor. The back court tandem has also shot 46.2 percent from 3-point range and dished out 7.7 assists per contest with just three turnovers.
PLAYER TO WATCH: DENVER JONES
» Junior guard Denver Jones scored 12 points on 2-of-2 shooting from long range and 6-of-6 from the foul line against USC on Dec. 17. It was his second 12-point performance in the last three games after he went for 12 points in the Tigers' win over Indiana. Jones also put up double digits against then No. 20-ranked Baylor (13 points) in the team's season opener and versus St. Bonaventure (12 points) in the championship game of the Legends Classic.
» Jones has made his last 20-consecutive free throws. He currently leads the SEC and ranks 22nd nationally with a 92.6 percent accuracy from the free throw line this season.
» Auburn is the only team that has two of the Top 5 free throw shooters in the SEC as junior combo guard/forward Chad Baker-Mazara, ranks fifth shooting 87.9 percent from the charity stripe.
» The school record for consecutive free throws made (34) was set last season by former Auburn guard Wendell Green Jr.