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Auburn Basketball Hits Road to Face Vandy; Keys to Victory

By Jake Mastroianni

Dec 29, 2016; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers guard Jared Harper (1) gets fouled heading to the basket by Georgia Bulldogs forward Kenny Paul Geno (25) during the first half at Auburn Arena. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 29, 2016; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers guard Jared Harper (1) gets fouled heading to the basket by Georgia Bulldogs forward Kenny Paul Geno (25) during the first half at Auburn Arena. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /
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We will take a look at the matchup between Auburn basketball and the Vanderbilt Commodores on Wednesday night in Nashville.

After a disappointing end to the football season all attention is now on Bruce Pearl’s 10-3 (0-1) Auburn basketball team.

Their last outing was also disappointing as they blew a double-digit lead in the second half to lose at home to Georgia.

Now they go on the road to face Vanderbilt that has only lost at home once this year.

The Commodores are just 7-6 on the season, but have some pretty good losses. They opened conference play with a win on the road over LSU 96-89.

Vanderbilt is led by junior Matthew Fisher-Davis who is averaging 16.4 points per game. Luke Kornet (12.8) and Jeff Roberson (10.5) also average double figures. Roberson is also the top rebounder for Vanderbilt averaging 7.7 boards per game.

Kornet, a senior, is 7-foot-1, 250 pounds and picks up 5.4 rebounds per game. He and Roberson will be a challenge in the paint for Auburn.

Junior guard Riley Lachance is the floor general for the team averaging 9.8 points and 4.4 assists per game playing over 30 minutes a game.

I know they don’t have the wins to show it, but this is a very good team with a lot of experience. Four of their five starts are juniors or seniors. The veteran leadership on Georgia is what cost Auburn a win in their SEC opener. Let’s hope the same thing doesn’t happen Wednesday night.

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As a team the Commodores average 72.9 points a game and give up 70. Rebounds, turnovers and steals are pretty even.

Once again I think Auburn basketball is the better team, and is much deeper, but how will these young guys handle their first road test in the SEC?

Things didn’t go well at home, so I’m not too confident in them on the road.

Offense has not been a problem for the Tigers, even against Georgia where four guys reached double-digits.

Stopping teams from scoring has been a major issue for this young Auburn basketball team. Vanderbilt should slow the game down some, which will help Auburn. They key is can they prevent Vanderbilt from getting too many offensive rebounds and second chance opportunities?

Auburn basketball hasn’t beaten Vanderbilt since the 2006-07 season, and they haven’t won in Nashville since the 1999-2000 season when Auburn went 24-10.

Next: Auburn Football: Thoughts From Horrible Sugar Bowl Performance

Hopefully that streak can be broken Wednesday night.

Prediction: Auburn – 81 Vanderbilt – 78

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