AUBURN, Ala. – Expecting what he calls No. 25 Auburn's "toughest challenge of the year" to date, head coach Bruce Pearl previewed Saturday's SEC opener at Arkansas.
Next Game:
vs. Arkansas
Jan. 6, 2024
1 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
"This is the most talented team we've played," Pearl said. "This team is more talented than Baylor."
It's not just the players, it's also the place. Bud Walton Arena seats 19,368.
"There's probably not a tougher place to open because of the fanbase, the intensity, the noise," Pearl said. "It's a great venue, great history and tradition, and it's a really good team."
Arkansas (9-4) averages 82 points per game. Auburn holds opponents to 68 points per game.
"Our great challenge will be defensively," Pearl said. "If we can hold them down in the 70s we've got a fighting chance. Not everybody will be able to go to Arkansas and have a chance.
"We hope to be a team that can go on the road and compete with the best teams in our league and this is certainly one of them."
Auburn will rely on two factors to try to pull off the road win, Pearl says.
"Defense and rebounding win championships," he said. "The ability to guard and make it hard for them, and don't give them second shots. Being able to make shots, make free throws and not turn the ball over.
"We've got balance and we've got depth. Our best players have got to be there for us to win."
Auburn takes a six-game win streak to Fayetteville. It will be the Tigers' second true road game, after a 69-64 loss at Appalachian State on Dec. 3 that Pearl scheduled to prepare his team for SEC road games.
"As the size and the athleticism and the physicality increases night in and night out, we're going to lose games now that we're in conference play," he said. "How we handle adversity. Take them one at a time. Matchups are going to be important. There are certain teams that we're going play well against because of matchups and styles of play.
"We can't get too high if we win a few in a row. We can't get too concerned if we lose a couple."
Auburn senior Chris Moore, a native of West Memphis, Arkansas, appreciates another opportunity to complete in his home state.
"If you go to hostile environments like Arkansas, the crowd is going to elevate them," Moore said. "It's going to be loud and rowdy. You've got to stay solid, stay composed and trust the process."
Seeking its seventh straight victory, No. 25 Auburn (11-2) tips off against the Razorbacks Saturday at 1 p.m. CT on ESPN2. Andy Burcham and Randall Dickey will call the action on the Auburn Sports Network.
"We're going to learn a lot," Pearl said.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
PLAYER TO WATCH: K.D. JOHNSON
Senior guard K.D. Johnson is coming off one of the most complete games of his career registering 11 points on 3-of-6 field goals, including one 3-pointer, and going 4-of-6 from the free throw line versus Penn to ring in the New Year. He also added five rebounds, four assists and one steal against the Quakers.
One of the most energetic and charismatic players on the floor, Johnson has now scored in double figures four times this season and 55 times in his career. He also led the team in plus-minus (+21) for the first time of his Auburn career vs. Penn.
INSIDE THE SERIES: ARKANSAS
This will be the 60th all-time meeting between Auburn and Arkansas with the Razorbacks holding a 38-21 series lead and having won four out of the last five contests. Arkansas leads 22-5 in games played in Fayetteville, including wins in three of the last four.
Last season, the two teams split a pair of games with Auburn winning 72-59 in Neville Arena behind 19 points from Wendell Green Jr., 18 points from Allen Flanigan and a double-double (10 points and 10 rebounds) from Johni Broome. Arkansas returned the favor with a 76-73 victory in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Nashville.
TIGERS IN SEC OPENERS
Auburn is 41-49 all-time in SEC openers since the league's first season in 1932-33. The Tigers have won two straight SEC openers after defeating Florida 61-58 in last year's SEC opener at Neville Arena. Under Bruce Pearl, Auburn is 5-4 in SEC openers and 2-2 when opening conference play on the road.
TOUGHEST HOME COURTS IN THE SEC
Since Bruce Pearl took over at Auburn, Neville Arena has become of the best home-court environments in the SEC along with Kentucky's Rupp Arena, Tennessee's Thompson-Boling Arena and Arkansas' Bud Walton Arena.
Only 23 teams (Auburn twice) have come into Bud Walton Arena and left with a win over the last nine-plus seasons since 2014-15.
SEC vs. Kentucky at Rupp Arena: 11-69 (.138)
SEC vs. Arkansas at Bud Walton Arena: 23-58 (.283)
SEC vs. Tennessee at Thompson-Boling Arena: 25-56 (.309)
SEC vs. Auburn at Neville Arena: 28-52 (.350)