Bruce Pearl and Auburn have Georgia on their minds as they look to complete the sweep of the Bulldogs in Auburn Arena on Tuesday.
Auburn played Georgia on Jan. 13, and bested the Bulldogs 95-77 for the Tigers' first SEC win of the season. Pearl thinks that both teams have grown since the first meeting in Athens, and that Georgia is not to be overlooked.
“They’re 3-2 since we played them over there, and that is impressive,” Pearl said. “I think it says a lot about Tom Crean and his staff that they were able to take that loss, where we played really well, and didn’t let it affect them and have beaten Ole Miss twice and Kentucky one time since we left there. They’re alive and well, they're engaged.”
Pearl was candid when talking about the possibility for a season sweep of the Bulldogs, noting that the two schools have played each other even for years. The series is tight historically, with Auburn holding a 97-95 series lead. Pearl is 7-5 against Georgia since taking over for the Tigers in 2014.
When asked about his team’s development since the first game against Georgia, Pearl said that his team played as well as they have all year, during the victory in Athens. The Tigers turned the ball over 21 times in Athens, but Pearl thinks his team has improved on that aspect as of late.
“I would say that we’ve probably taken care of the ball a little better. I know there are areas of transition defense and offensive execution where we’ve got a long way to go,” Pearl said. “Georgia, they just play so hard and they attack you downhill. K.D. Johnson has made them a better team and a tougher cover. Georgia plays with as much effort and energy as anybody in our league.”
Pearl called the matchup a potential “track meet” with the way both schools play. Senior Bulldog guard Justin Kier is 23rd in the nation in forced steals per game, leading the SEC, and collectively the team is 15th in the country in turnovers forced per game, which is the best in the SEC.
On offense, the Bulldogs are equally as disruptive. Sophomore Sahvir Wheeler is fifth in the nation in assists, leading the SEC. Pearl stated that Georgia’s fast, up-and-down-the-court play will cause Auburn disruptions, but limiting careless errors will be the potential difference-maker.
“Georgia will run as hard as anybody in the league, and they will score early in their offense,” Pearl said. “And they will put enormous pressure on transition defense and enormous pressure on our rim. And the tempo will be up. I think that what you want is for your turnovers to be forced turnovers instead of careless. They will steal one or two inbound passes every game just on a fastbreak.”
For the eighth straight game, freshman guard Justin Powell will miss game action after suffering a concussion in early January. Powell stopped by Auburn’s practice on Monday, Pearl said, and saw his teammates for the “first time in a while.” His status in unclear for the remainder of the season.
Auburn (10-8, 4-5 SEC) will tip-off against Georgia (10-6, 3-6 SEC) at 6:00 Central Time in Auburn Arena.
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