The Auburn Tigers and the Missouri Tigers will square off in the opening weekend for SEC play in Neville Arena after the Auburn Tigers' impressive non-conference feats.
Auburn and Missouri have had excellent starts to the season, with Auburn ranked No. 2 in the country with a 12-1 record and Missouri 11-2 in the season thus far.
While Missouri might not be ranked earlier this season, they defeated No. 1 Kansas 76-67 at home, and their two losses came from No. 22 Illinois and No. 21 Memphis.
Missouri is 6-34 all-time against AP top two opponents but is looking to improve to 2-0 in that category this season.
Auburn ended its non-conference slate with its most recent game, an 87-58 victory over Monmouth, which was its 60th straight non-conference home victory.
The Missouri Tigers also capped off their non-conference schedule with a win and a home victory over Alabama State 82-65.
The two Tigers have met 16 times, with Auburn ahead of Missouri with a 10-6 record. Auburn has won seven of the last eight meetings, with the last loss being an 85-73 defeat in 2020 in Columbia, Missouri.
Both teams expect fireworks as both squads have demonstrated high-powered offense this season. The Auburn and Missouri Tigers rank inside the top 10 in points scored per game, with Auburn fifth in the nation with 88.3 and Missouri tenth with 87.3.
Players to Watch
Auburn: Taahad Pettiford
The true freshman guard Taahad Pettiford has seen his fair share of the spotlight in the star-studded Auburn rotation this season and has been credited with being a big reason why the Tigers have been this good so far.
“Tahaad wants to be coached. He wants to get better,” Pearl said. “He asks questions. Based on preseason expectations, he’s the best freshman in the country. Let’s say he was 25th (in preseason rankings). He’s not the 25th-best freshman in the country.”
With JP Pegues struggling to find his way into the rotation, Pettiford has taken over the ball handler role off the bench, even though it was assumed he would act more as a shooting guard.
Pettiford is currently averaging 11.7 points per game and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 42.1 percent on 3-point attempts.
The Auburn Tigers will need to continue to have its dangerous freshman step up to win this game and seize any future goals.
Missouri: Mark Mitchell
The Missouri Tigers' leading scorer, Mark Mitchell has made his impact felt immediately in his first season with the Tigers after spending two seasons with the Duke Blue Devils.
Mitchell currently leads the team in points per game (13.8) and rebounds per game (5.0). At 6 feet 9 inches, he has become a force for any smaller defender and excels at grabbing boards on the offensive glass.
The Missouri Tigers will rely on its best player as head coach Dennis Gates looks to play spoiler for Auburn in Neville Arena.
The Tigers clash on the opening weekend of the SEC play when Auburn and Missouri meet at Neville Arena on Saturday at 3 p.m CST. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network.
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Craig Noyes is a senior from Kensington, Maryland, majoring in journalism. He joined The Plainsman in January 2023.
You can follow him on X (Twitter) at @CraigNoyes58
