Auburn Men’s Basketball Looks to Rebound Against Ole Miss Following Loss to Gators

The Auburn men’s basketball team will return to the court for the first time since its upset loss to the Florida Gators as the Tigers play Ole Miss Wednesday. Auburn sits in first place in the SEC and has yet to lose at home this season, while Ole Miss is in 12th.

Last Meeting

This will be the second meeting between these two teams this year after Auburn defeated Ole Miss 80-71 on the road on Jan. 15. The Tigers trailed by six at halftime but outscored the Rebels 42-27 in the second half behind 20 points and ten rebounds from Walker Kessler. Jabari Smith added 15 points while K.D. Johnson had 14.

For Ole Miss, Nysier Brooks, Matthew Murrell and Jaemyn Brakefield combined for 37 points. Ole Miss also made eight of their 22 three-pointers and were 15-15 at the free-throw line in the loss.

Auburn

After coming in with only two losses all season, Auburn fell by one point to the Gators despite an incredible performance from Smith. This spring, the potential top picker in the NBA recorded 28 points, three points off his season-high.

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However, Auburn dropped a spot in the rankings and is now ranked third with a 24-3 record. Auburn’s lone other loss in SEC Play came against Arkansas as they also fell to the University of Connecticut in the Battle 4 Atlantis on Nov. 24.

Ole Miss

Ole Miss comes into this game following its win over Georgia. Through 14 conference games, the Rebels are 4-10 and had previously lost four straight before their win against Georgia. In 16 games this year, Jarkel Joiner leads the team with 14.7 points per game. Daeshun Ruffin averages 12.7.

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Tip-off will be set for Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. on the SEC Network. Following the game, Auburn will have three more SEC matchups against Tennessee, Mississippi State and South Carolina. Ole Miss will play Texas A&M, Kentucky and Vanderbilt before the SEC Tournament starts on March 9 in Tampa.