The No. 1 Auburn Tigers return home from a successful road trip to take on the Oklahoma Sooners for the first time as conference opponents in Neville Arena.
The Tigers took to the road last week and earned a pair of victories in an 87-74 victory over the LSU Tigers and then a 92-82 victory over No. 23 Ole Miss on Saturday.
Auburn’s victory in Oxford, Mississippi, was the Tigers' seventh win over a ranked opponent this season, the most of any team in the country.
The Sooners are 16-5 overall and 3-5 in conference play in their first season in the SEC. They split their wins last week, losing 75-68 at Texas A&M and rebounding with a 97-67 victory over No. 24 Vanderbilt at home Saturday.
The Sooners' 30-point victory over an AP top-25 team tied their largest margin of victory over a team in program history. They will come into Neville Arena with some momentum.
While the Sooners' trip to Neville will be their first as a conference opponent, it is not the first time Oklahoma has visited the No. 1 Tigers. In the 2021-22 SEC/Big 12 challenge, No. 1 Auburn defeated the Sooners 86-68, led by future third overall NBA Draft pick Jabari Smith and his 23-point performance.
Players to watch
Auburn: Denver Jones
The Tigers' point guard has been praised for his two-way ability all season, including his ability to score the long ball and play good defense at a high level, but the Sooners will test him.
Oklahoma ranks third in the SEC in opponent 3-point percentage allowed and first in 3-point percentage on offense. It has been dominating the deep ball all season long.
In the victory against Ole Miss, Jones scored 16 points while shooting 4-of-7 on 3-point attempts and constantly came up with a clutch shot when the Tigers needed a spark on offense.
While Jones could score efficiently against Ole Miss, so did the Rebels' starting point guard, Sean Pedulla, who scored 29 points while shooting 10-for-16 from the field.
The Tigers must continue to see efficient scoring from their starting point guard and an all-out effort on the defensive end to keep the best 3-point shooting team in the conference at bay.
Oklahoma: Jeremiah Fears
The Sooners' true freshman point guard, Jeremiah Fears, has been phenomenal for Oklahoma and has powered the offense thus far this season.
Fears ranks second on the Sooners' offense with 16.1 points per game and second on the team with four assists per game.
In the victory over Vanderbilt, Fears scored 21 points while shooting 8-for-12 from the field with six rebounds and four assists.
While Fears has been impressive all season long, his road splits significantly dipped. He scores 9.6 fewer points per game and shoots 23.9 percent worse from the field in road games than in home games.
The Sooners will need Fears to overcome his road woes if Oklahoma wants to upset the nation's No. 1 team.
The Tigers and Sooners will meet in Neville Arena at 8 p.m. CST on Tuesday, and the game will be available to watch on the 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
