Auburn Basketball Looks to Stay Consistent vs. Ole Miss in Oxford

After grinding out a defensive win at home against South Carolina, the Tigers travel to Oxford to face an Ole Miss team that walked out of Starkville on Saturday with a one-point win over Mississippi State.

How to watch:
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 20 | Time: 9:00 PM ET
Location: The Pavilion (Oxford, MS)
TV: ESPN | Live Stream: ESPN+

It wasn’t a pretty win, but that’s what it’s going to take this year. For the first time this season, Auburn’s lack of offensive production did not affect the effort or intensity on the defensive end.

Offensive Adjustments

This was undoubtedly Auburn’s worst shooting performance of the season. The Tigers made just two of their 19 attempts from three-point range. Tahaad Pettiford and Kevin Overton each finished 1-for-5 from deep, with Auburn shooting just 11% from beyond the arc as a team.

Combine that with Keyshawn Hall getting into foul trouble — three fouls in the first eight minutes — and Auburn had its work cut out. Hall logged only 14 minutes and finished with eight points, his lowest scoring output since March of last year.

With Auburn's jumpers not falling, Coach Steven Pearl needed to make a critical adjustment. Auburn began dominating on the inside, outscoring the Gamecocks 42-26 in the paint, with Filip Jović playing out of his mind.

The Gamecocks may have had a plan for Hall, but they had no answer for Jović. South Carolina likely should’ve listened to Arkansas head coach John Calipari, who asked after facing Auburn earlier this season, “What was his name, the big white kid? He killed us.”

Efficient is an understatement: Jović finished the game with 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting, 5-of-8 from the line, and added six rebounds, a block, and a pair of steals in 30 minutes. Every point from the bench on Saturday came from Jović. In SEC play, he’s shooting 19-of-23 from the field and now leads the conference in KenPom’s offensive rating.

I've mentioned before that KeShawn Murphy has game and can produce on offense. If Auburn can run the offense through Jović and Murphy in games like this where Hall, Pettiford, and Overton's shots aren't falling, that's a massive benefit.

How Auburn Stayed in the Game

Auburn remained in this game because of its defensive effort. In the post-game interview with Jović and Sebastian Williams-Adams, they repeated the idea of not letting their offense affect their defense. "Even if we go on the road, our shots may not travel but our defense will," said Williams-Adams.

Pressure created by Auburn’s defense held South Carolina to just 40% shooting and 32% from three. KeShawn Murphy, Elyjah Freeman, and Tahaad Pettiford each had two blocks, as the Tigers totaled eight blocks. Kevin Overton and Williams-Adams each recorded three steals, helping Auburn finish with 10 total. Auburn also had twice as many blocks and steals as the Gamecocks and forced 15 turnovers.

Coach Pearl has harped on the necessity of playing defense all season. Hopefully, Auburn can carry this trend into its difficult upcoming schedule.

Auburn vs. Ole Miss Match-up

Ole Miss is 3-2 in conference play with wins over Missouri and Georgia — teams Auburn struggled to put away. Their most recent win was against Mississippi State on Saturday, a 68–67 victory for their third straight win.

Historically, Auburn has dominated this matchup, winning the last nine games. But this year, the SEC feels more like a toss-up: unpredictable and wide open.

Ole Miss is coming off a poor shooting performance against Mississippi State, going just 2-for-20 from the perimeter and 41% from the field. Like Auburn, their defense kept them in the game, and they protected the ball well, committing just five turnovers. The Rebels give the ball up only 10 times per game — 36th in the nation.

Senior guard and Kansas transfer AJ Storr has been on the rise in SEC play: 26 points against Missouri, 27 against Georgia, and 17 against Mississippi State. Limiting production from both him and senior forward Malik Dia will be critical for Auburn to escape Oxford with a win.

Fortunately for Auburn, and Keyshawn Hall, the Rebels commit nearly 19 fouls per game, one of the worst rates nationally.

Final Thoughts and Prediction

Depth matters. For a while, it felt like this team would live and die by Keyshawn Hall. Now it looks like if our shooters are struggling, Murphy, SWA, and Jović can pick up the pieces. Not that I want to see this team continue shooting 33% from three, but at least we have options if it does.

On paper, Auburn is the better team here, even playing in Oxford. I mentioned previously that Auburn needed to go 2-1 in the stretch starting with Missouri, and they’re 1-1 since then. A win here would go a long way — especially with seven SEC teams sitting at 3-2.

My prediction:
Auburn 85, Ole Miss 82

Current SEC Standings