The Auburn Tigers kick off the home slate on Friday night by hosting the Southeastern Louisiana Lions at Neville Arena.
Auburn played a tough game with No. 17 Baylor in its season opener on Tuesday, but could not pull off the upset win. Can they put that behind them and earn their first win of the season on Friday? ESPN Analytics has full confidence that the Tigers can run past Southeastern Louisiana by giving them a 95.8% chance to earn its first victory of the season.
The Lions are projected to win the Southland Conference, but should not provide as much of a challenge as Baylor did on Tuesday. What are some things that Auburn can correct from Tuesday’s loss? Head coach Bruce Pearl explains that a better defensive plan in the second half can make a world of difference.
“We still scored 39 points in the second half, so the second half offense wasn’t (the problem). Our second-half defense, having (Baylor) in the bonus in five minutes of basketball in the second half, putting them on the foul line 21 times. We’ve got to do a better job of staying in front, a better job of moving our feet. I just thought — it’s a big game. It’s a big game. I just didn’t expect Baylor to go to the foul line 34 times.”
Auburn hosts Southeastern Louisiana for a 7 p.m. CT tipoff on SEC Network+. The Tigers look to earn their first win of the season ahead of its trip to Brooklyn next Thursday to compete in the Vivid Seats Legends Classic at Barclays Center.
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