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A spirit that is not afraid

PREVIEW: Auburn to face nationally ranked Purdue in Cancun

After surviving in Tuesday night's thriller, head coach Bruce Pearl and the Auburn Tigers will face their toughest test this season on Wednesday night in Cancun, Mexico, as they take on Purdue. 

Purdue certainly passes the eye test, and houses a much larger and more experienced roster than Auburn does. The No.17 Boilermakers rolled over Utah State on Tuesday 85-64, largely due to their size and power.

Alabama native Isaac Hass is Purdue's anchor in the paint and can provide scoring in bunches. The 7-foot-2 center hit 9-10 from the field on Tuesday night, scoring 25 points for the Boilermakers. Haas is averaging just over 20 points and three rebounds on the season. 

Auburn's guards will also have their hands full with Purdue's Dakota Mathias, who hit 6-7 from behind the arc on Tuesday on his way to scoring 26 points.

Boilermaker forwards Caleb Swanigan and Vincent Edwards are also forces on offense for Purdue. Swanigan, a 6-foot-9 junior, and Edwards, a 6-foot-8 junior, both have the ability to score in a variety of ways, and were both in double-figures on Tuesday night vs. Utah State. 

Auburn's victory over Texas Tech extended the Tiger record to 4-0 for the first time since the 2011-2012 season. If the Tigers are victorious on Wednesday, a 5-0 Auburn record will be the best since the 2004-2005 season. 

Pearl has a 1-1 record vs. Purdue. He defeated the Boilermakers once while coaching Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and lost in 2009 while at Tennessee. 

Auburn and Purdue will tip-off at 7:30 p.m. CST. at the Hard Rock Hotel Riveria Maya. Action can be seen on the CBS Sports Network.  


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