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Auburn Basketball: Tigers Looking to Upset No. 24 Arkansas at Auburn Arena

By Nicholas Ian Allen

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The Auburn basketball team got of to a strong start Saturday against Ole Miss, but couldn’t stop the Rebels down the stretch and fell 86-79. Now, the Tigers take aim at upsetting No. 24 Arkansas. 

Auburn Tigers (11-12, 3-7) vs Arkansas Razorbacks (18-5, 7-3)

  • Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2015
  • Start Time: 8:00 PM Central
  • Location: Auburn, AL
  • Arena: Auburn Arena
  • TV Info: ESPNU
  • Live Stream: WatchESPN, ESPN3.com
  • Odds (VegasInsider.com): Arkansas (-5.5)

Auburn led at halftime against Ole Miss Saturday, but the red-hot Rebels stormed back in the second half to defeat the Tigers 86-79 at Auburn Arena. Picking up a big SEC win against Ole Miss would have helped the Tigers generate a lot of momentum heading into the final 30 days of the 2014-15 regular season – but the 11-12, 3-7 Auburn basketball team still has what it takes to make a run in the Southeastern Conference.

“With the exception of Kentucky, I have said there isn’t a team on our schedule we can’t beat,” head coach Bruce Pearl said in a press conference Monday. “I don’t know if we can beat Kentucky at Kentucky. I just don’t know. I don’t know. Can we (go on a run)? Yeah, we can.”

Feb 7, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers guard Antoine Mason (14) takes a shot against the Ole Miss Rebels during the second half at Auburn Arena. The Rebels beat the Tigers 86-79. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports

To begin a run, the Tigers need to upset 24th ranked Arkansas at home. The Razorbacks come to Auburn Arena 18-5 overall and 7-3 in SEC play, having won two in a row. Arkansas defeated South Carolina 75-55 February 3 and Mississippi State 61-41 Saturday, giving the program its first back-to-back 20-point SEC victories since 1993.

Bobby Portis is one of the best players in the SEC and is the league’s leading scorer with 17.7 points per game. He’s been even better in conference play and averages 19 points and 10.2 boards against league foes this season. At 6-foot-11 and 242 pounds, he’s a matchup nightmare inside for Cinmeon Bowers.

Overall, the Hogs lead the league in scoring (79.3 points per game), offensive rebounds (13.6 per game) and assists (16.8 per game). They are also relentless on the defensive end.

“They turn you over more than anyone else in the league,” Pearl said. “They turn you over 16-plus times — which means you get 16 less possessions to take the ball and score.”

Arkansas is 15-0 this season when forcing 15 or more turnovers.

“They shoot pretty quickly. They lead the league in field goals attempted. They are going to get it down there and beat you in transition. They play unselfishly. They do a really good job. They have five guys out there that can score. It is an equal-opportunity offense for them out there and they are really hard to guard. They are so long that it is hard to shoot over.”

Beating Arkansas is obviously a tough task. However, there are some positive signs heading into tonight’s matchup.

Arkansas isn’t nearly as good on the road as they are at Bud Walton Arena. The Razorbacks are just 3-4 this season on an opponent’s home floor with losses to Florida, Tennessee, Clemson and Iowa State and struggled to beat last place Missouri 61-60.

Plus, despite three straight losses at home, the Tigers are tough to beat at Auburn Arena and are 9-4 there this season.

Auburn has a tough scoring trio in K.T. Harrell – the league’s second leading scorer – Antoine Mason, who has back-to-back 20-point games, and the surprisingly well-rounded Cinmeon Bowers who averages a double-double, has 14 this season, and had a team season-high seven assists against Ole Miss.

Combined, they’ve scored an average of 68% of the Tigers’ points per contest.

The Tigers proved they can compete with anyone having defeated LSU 81-77 in Baton Rouge last week, but that’s the team’s only win in their last six games.

“I’ve had more difficult teams to coach in winning seasons than this team,” Pearl said. “I’m not having fun losing. I’m not going to have fun losing, but I can tell you that this is a good team and it’s been a good team to coach and they still are. Now, we have to keep competing.”

Pearl and the Tigers will compete again tonight, and if Harrell, Mason and Bowers are on their games and can limit Portis’ damage, they’ve got a chance to pull off a big upset.

Auburn

Arkansas

  • #10 Bobby Portis, F, So., 6-foot-11, 242 pounds, 17.7 PPG, 8.8 RPG
  • #2 Alandise Harris, F, Sr., 6-foot-6, 230 pounds, 7.6 PPG, 3.3 RPG
  • #24 Michael Qualls, G, Jr., 6-foot-6, 205 pounds, 15.1 PPG, 5.3 RPG
  • #00 Rashad Madden, G, Sr., 6-foot-5, 182 pounds, 9.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG
  • #31 Anton Beard, G, Fr., 6-foot-0, 195 pounds, 5.4 PPG, 1.8 RPG

Next: 2015 Auburn Football Recruiting Class Player Profiles

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