AUBURN, Ala. – In his postgame radio interview following Wednesday's difficult loss at No. 4 Tennessee, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said the hardest thing the Tigers would have to do all year to this point is "recover from this."
Next Game:
vs. Mississippi State
March 2, 2024
3 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN2
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
It was a hard-fought, back-and-forth battle that Auburn had a chance to win. Now the Tigers, ranked No. 11 nationally, have to bounce back and play a dangerous Mississippi State team at home Saturday.
"We knew Wednesday we were playing for an SEC championship," Pearl said Friday. "We've been playing for an SEC championship all season. But we also knew if we couldn't upset Tennessee at Tennessee that we would be two games behind them with three to go. How does that affect our play?
"I'm just telling you. The three best teams we've played in here have been Alabama, Kentucky and Mississippi State. How are we going to bring the effort and energy that we managed to bring against Alabama and to some extent Kentucky? This will be a real challenge for us."
Mississippi State has already knocked off Auburn once this year, winning 64-58 in Starkville. That is motivation enough for the players heading into the rematch.
"It won't be hard to bounce back at all," junior Johni Broome said. "We lost to Tennessee, and they (Mississippi State) beat us already once. If we're still worried about the Tennessee loss, that's a problem. I think everybody is ready to get this game back. We let it slip at their house. Hopefully we can come back and get a win at our house."
Broome led the Tigers with 14 points in the first meeting against Mississippi State, but he was one of only two players to score in double figures against the Bulldogs.
Mississippi State was led by 17 points from freshman Josh Hubbard who Pearl referred to as "Dalton Knecht-dangerous" in his ability to get hot and make shots.
The rematch between Auburn and Mississippi State will tip off at 3 p.m. CT from Neville Arena. Andy Burcham and Sonny Smith 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: DENVER JONES
Junior guard Denver Jones has scored in double figures in five of the last eight games for the Tigers. He registered 11 points on 3-of-4 field goals, including one 3-pointer, against No. 4 Tennessee on Wednesday night. Jones is currently averaging 10.3 points per game and is shooting 44.8 percent from long range on the season.
One of the top available transfers in the country this past summer and the leading scorer in Conference USA a year ago (20.1 ppg at FIU), Jones has turned in 10 games with double figures this season with five coming in SEC play.
INSIDE THE SERIES: MISSISSIPPI STATE
Auburn and Mississippi State are meeting for the 153rd time all-time with the Tigers holding an 81-71 lead. Auburn had won six straight games against the Bulldogs prior to Mississippi State's 64-58 victory in Starkville earlier this season. Auburn has won three straight in Neville Arena where the Tigers hold a 6-1 advantage in the series.
Last season, Auburn won the lone matchup between the two teams, 69-63, at Neville Arena behind 21 points and seven rebounds from Jaylin Williams.
MAKING HISTORY
Graduate senior forward Jaylin Williams will play in his 135th career game at Auburn on Saturday, breaking the school record previously held by Frankie Sullivan (2009-13). He returned to the lineup Wednesday night in Knoxville after missing one game due to injury and finished with 12 points, four assists and three rebounds in 20 minutes.