The men's basketball team will have its last chance to work the kinks out Saturday night before games start counting.
"What I'm trying to get across to my guys is what kind of team do we want to be, what kind of season do we want to have?" said coach Tony Barbee.
Barbee and the Tigers will host Victory University at 7 p.m. Saturday in the team's last exhibition before tipping off for the official season opener next week.
"You may look at these teams that we're playing, and they're not up to our level maybe in some areas," said sophomore forward Allen Payne. "But we still need these games to measure out where we are and where we need to get to so that we can compete at our level."
Auburn defeated Paine College 86-60 in its first exhibition Tuesday night at home.
Sophomore guard Chris Denson picked up where he left off last season, leading the Tigers offensively with 21 points, three assists, seven rebounds and one steal.
"He's really carried over from how he finished the year last year," Barbee said. "As a team and individually, I want my team to play with that kind of fire in their eyes. He struggled with that last year. He finally got it late, and that's why he got better."
Senior forward Kenny Gabriel returned as last season's leading scorer and rebounder, scoring 12 points and bringing in eight rebounds against the Lions.
Sophomore guard Varez Ward had his first start as a Tiger after sitting out last season. NCAA rules prevented him from playing after he transferred from the University of Texas.
However, Ward went down with just under 17 minutes left in the game, spraining his left ankle and ending with five assists and three points.
"The doctors are still evaluating him," Barbee said. "He sprained that ankle early in the preseason, and now it's flared back up. I think it's just a mild sprain right now."
Junior guard Frankie Sullivan started for the Tigers after earning a medical hardship last year, only playing in six games after tearing and re-aggravating his ACL. He scored three points before fouling out late in the second half.
Freshman center Willy Kouassi, who was born in the Ivory Coast, received 13 minutes of playing time against the Lions.
Kouassi was named the No. 66 best high school player in the nation and seventh-best center in the country by rival.com.
Junior starting center Rob Chubb added 14 points and eight rebounds of his own against Paine College.
Junior forward Noel Johnson, who transferred from Clemson during the off-season, has been listed as ineligible until January. He will not miss any SEC games and will have a season and a half of collegiate eligibility remaining.
"I am excited about what Noel is going to bring the Auburn family on and off the court," Barbee said.
The Tigers are also currently without senior and sophomore guards Tony Neysmith and Josh Langford, both of whom have been suspended indefinitely.
"That's part of the game," said sophomore forward Allen Payne. "People are going to be out with injuries or off-the-court issues or whatever it may be. That's just an opportunity for guys to step up at different positions."
Barbee said both players "have some things to do" before they are welcomed back on the team.
Auburn's first regular season game is at home against McNeese State Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.
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