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Auburn Basketball: Tigers vs Winthrop Game Info, and Preview

By Nicholas Ian Allen

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Auburn Tigers (3-5) vs Winthrop Eagles (4-4)

Date: Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Start Time: 8PM Central
Location: Auburn, AL
Arena: Auburn Arena
TV Info: SEC Network
Odds (via VegasInsider.com): Auburn (-8.5)

The Auburn basketball team is now 3-5 following Sunday’s 72-61 loss to Clemson, the third loss in a row and fourth in the last five games for the Tigers.

However, the Tigers got some good news: Antoine Mason hit the floor for the first time since the season opener.

The senior guard scored 14 points against Clemson after missing six games with an ankle injury. He also provided a spark of energy, increased depth and gave head coach Bruce Pearl more options than he has had in recent weeks.

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“Offensively,” Pearl said, “it was nice having him on the other side of the floor from K.T. [Harrell], because you have to guard him because he can knock down the three-ball and he is explosive going to the basket. One of the biggest weaknesses we have had without him is finding where to get two-point baskets. We can get them from Cinmeon, I can get some from K.T., but you go beyond that and finding two-point baskets is difficult.

“He is a guy that can attack the rim and post up and do some things for us. I was pleased at what I saw from him on Sunday for his first day back.”

And Mason wasn’t the only one to make an appearance. Trayvon Reed, a 7-foot-2 center, made his debut for the Tigers after joining the squad following a stint in prep school.

Reed is a big-time prospect that has tremendous upside, but until he works himself into the starting lineup, he will provide valuable depth and size off the bench. Alex Thompson, who took a “leave of absence” from the program this summer, is expect to make his season debut tonight.

In addition to the new faces, the Tigers got some good production from familiar ones against Clemson, though not enough to win. Cinmeon Bowers picked up his fifth double-double of the season Sunday with 17 points and 14 rebounds. He currently leads the SEC and ranks fourth nationally with 11.5 rebounds per game.

Nov 24, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Auburn Tigers guard

Tahj Shamsid-Deen

(13) shoots the ball during an NCAA basketball game against Tulsa at MGM Grand. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Senior K.T. Harrell had another strong scoring performance with 16 Sunday, and currently leads the SEC with 18 points per game.

Hopefully for Auburn, the good news will translate to a victory.

“The timing of many of our games have been interesting and somewhat difficult,” Pearl said. “This week we have Wednesday and Saturday against Xavier. It is important for us in these next five home games to start to come together, play better, put together some wins and have some confidence heading into conference play.”

To get off to a strong start during that five-game stretch, the Tigers must take care of business against the Winthrop Eagles.

Auburn will play just their fourth home game tonight, coming in 2-1 with tons over Milwaukee and Louisiana-Lafayette and a loss in their last home game against Coastal Carolina. The Eagles are only the second Auburn opponent that did not appear in a post-season tournament last season.

Under head coach Pat Kelsey, Winthrop finished 20-13 last season and finished second in the Big South Conference to Coastal Carolina. The Eagles return four starters from last year’s squad, but have lower expectations entering 2014-15 and is likely to finish in the middle of the pack in the league.

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    • Winthrop is 4-4 this season, defeated Mars Hill 96-51 in the last game and also scored an upset win over Clemson in the second game of the year. However, the Eagles have lost games to Savannah State, East Tennessee State and Maryland and have dropped each of their last three road games.

    They implement an up-tempo offense and ranked in the nation’s top 25 with 8.24 three-point field goals per game last season. This year, they’ve hit 8.25 threes on average.

    Keon Moore was the team’s leading scorer last season and shot 44% from beyond the arc, and is off to a great start this year. The senior leads the squad with 17.3 points per game, has scored 20-plus points four times this season, and ranks second on the squad with 4.9 rebounds. He was 0-for-4 from the three-point line against Mars Hill, which snapped a streak of 22 consecutive games with a three-pointer.

    For perhaps the first time all season, the Auburn basketball team will have a size advantage. The Eagles will start just one player bigger than Moore’s 6-foot-5, 190-pound frame: Jarad Scott. There is some size on the bench, but Cinmeon Bowers, Trayvon Reed and Jordon Granger will all have matchup advantages tonight, which is great news for the Tigers.

    Auburn is expected to win (by more than 8-points according to Vegas odds makers), which could give the Tigers momentum to finish the non-conference slate strong, and begin conference play on a high note.

    Projected Lineups:

    Auburn

    #5 Cinmeon Bowers, F, Jr., 6-foot-7, 278 pounds, 12.3 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 29.5 MPG
    #25 Jordon Granger, F, Jr., 6-foot-8, 210 pounds, 5.4 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 26.3 MPG
    #1 K.T. Harrell, G, Sr., 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, 18.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 31.8 MPG
    #13 Tahj Shamsid-Deen, G, So., 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, 7.5 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 26.6 MPG
    #12 K.C. Ross-Miller, G, Sr., 6-foot, 178 pounds, 7.1 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 24.0 MPG

    Winthrop

    #5 Keon Johnson, G, So., 5-foot-7, 160 pounds, 11.3 PPG, 1.4 RPG
    #10 Keon Moore, G, Sr., 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, 17.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG
    #11 Andre Smith, G, Sr., 5-foot-10, 170 pounds, 9.5 PPG, 1.9 RPG
    #31 Tevin Prescott, F, Jr., 6-foot-5, 180 pounds, 5.9 PPG, 6.1 RPG
    #35 Jarad Scott, F, So., 6-foot-8, 215 pounds, 7.4 PPG, 4.1 RPG

    Next: Preview & Predictions of Every Bowl Game

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