AUBURN, Ala. – It doesn't get much bigger than Wednesday night in Knoxville. No. 4 Tennessee and No. 11 Auburn are the SEC's two highest ranked teams. The Volunteers currently share the league lead with the Tigers a game back. A win for Auburn would put the Tigers in a position to win the regular season crown for the second time in three seasons.
Next Game:
at Tennessee
Feb. 28, 2024
6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
If you're Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, that's all you can ask for.
"It's almost March, and we're still playing for championships," Pearl said. "There just aren't many teams in the country that can say that, particularly in a league this good. Every game now, home or on the road, is precious.
"History matters to me. We're trying to make history. We're trying to win a conference championship. I think we need to win at Tennessee to win it or to be in a position to win it."
In a game of this magnitude, Pearl would love to have Jaylin Williams back from injury. And while Pearl said Tuesday there's a "possibility" the senior forward could return against Tennessee, there's also a chance Auburn might have to go without him.
On Saturday, in the first game with Williams out, the trio of Chad Baker-Mazara, Chaney Johnson and Aden Holloway all stepped up in his absence. They combined for 56 points in a 97-76 road win at Georgia.
"It shows we're really a complete team because we're missing one of the best players in the conference, maybe in the country," Johnson said. "It just shows how good of a job we do in the locker room with each other, just trusting each other. It's a testament to the work we put in outside of playing games. It shows that we're a solid team."
Johnson scored a season-high 16 points in what was his first career start at Auburn.
The challenge ramps up, however, against a Tennessee team that ranks in the top five in the SEC in both scoring offense (80.26 ppg) and scoring defense (66.56 ppg).
"Our defense has been good. It will have to be at its very best (against Tennessee)," Pearl said. "And it would be great if we can keep making shots, which is what it takes at the end of the year to get hot and win."
The Tigers and the Vols will tip off at 6 p.m. CT from Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville. Andy Burcham and Randall Dickey will have the radio call on 94.3 FM, online at AuburnTigers.com and on the Auburn app. The game will be televised on ESPN2.
PLAYER TO WATCH: CHAD BAKER-MAZARA
In his first career start in an Auburn uniform, junior wing Chad Baker-Mazara had a career day Saturday with a career-high 25 points in the Tigers' 97-76 road win at Georgia. He added five rebounds, four assists, two steals and one blocked shot against the Bulldogs. It marked his first 20-point game this season and his sixth game in double figures in the last seven contests. He's currently the team's third-leading scorer with 10.1 points per game.
After going 7-of-7 from the foul line at Georgia on Saturday, Baker-Mazara is now shooting 88.4 percent (84-of-95) for the season – good for second in the SEC. Over the last four games, he's made his last 20 free throws. Wendell Green Jr. holds the Auburn record for consecutive made free throws at 34, a record he set last season.
INSIDE THE SERIES: TENNESSEE
Tennessee holds an 80-45 advantage in the all-time series, including a 49-9 mark in Knoxville, but Auburn has won seven of the last nine games. Last season, the Tigers and Vols split the regular-season series. Tennessee held off Auburn 46-43 in Knoxville while Auburn claimed a 79-70 victory in the regular-season home finale at Neville Arena.
Eight of the last 10 games in the series have been decided by 10 points or less.
DOUBLE-DIGIT SEC WINS
Auburn's 21-point road win at Georgia was the Tigers' 10th SEC win of the season. It marked the 23rd time since the beginning of the SEC in 1933 that Auburn has recorded double-digit conference wins in a season and the sixth time in the last seven years.
Auburn's five seasons with 10 or more SEC wins since 2018 are tied with Kentucky and Tennessee for the most in the league. With their next win, the Tigers would reach 11 SEC wins for the 19th time in program history and the fifth time in the last seven seasons. It would tie them with Tennessee for the most in the league over that time.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION
Junior big man Johni Broome continues to receive national billing as a National Player of the Year and All-America candidate. He was one of 40 players nominated for the USBWA's Oscar Robertson National Player of the Year and All-America Team consideration. Broome turned in back-to-back double-double performances against No. 22 Kentucky (14 points and 11 rebounds) and Georgia (16 points and 13 rebounds) his last two times out.