Texas A&M @ Auburn preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 16, 2019 ) Auburn 85, Texas A&M 66

No. 15 Auburn saw its SEC regular-season title hopes extinguished over the weekend and looks to build some momentum for the postseason when Texas A&M visits Wednesday night for the home finale. The Tigers dropped into a tie with LSU for second place in the league after falling 73-66 at Kentucky on Saturday after shooting just 36.1 percent from the field and making 9-of-34 from behind the 3-point arc.

“I figured we need to spread it and shoot 3s, and did a pretty good job,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl told reporters. “The closer you get to the basket the better you don’t always look against them. If we make a couple of those shots and a couple of free throws, we are right there.” The Tigers snapped a three-game losing streak in the series with an 85-66 victory last season over Texas A&M, which sits in the middle of the pack in the SEC for first-year coach Buzz Williams after dropping its last two contests. The Aggies, who end the regular season at home against Arkansas on Saturday, never got much going last Saturday in a 64-50 loss at LSU and made just 1-of-9 free throw attempts. “We need to make more than one free throw,” Williams told reporters after the defeat. “We need to try to get in the bonus both halves, as early as we can.”

TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN2

ABOUT TEXAS A&M (14-14, 8-8 SEC): Senior forward Josh Nebo is second in the league in field-goal percentage (66.5) and third in blocks (1.9) while leading the Aggies in scoring (12.0) and rebounds (6.3). Junior guard Savion Flagg tops the team in assists (2.5) and is second in scoring (10.5) after averaging 13.8 points over the past six games, while senior guard Wendell Mitchell is scoring 9.5 per contest overall - 14.8 in his last five. Freshman forward Emanuel Miller (6.2 rebounds) was averaging 13.5 points over a four-game stretch before being held to just two combined in the past two.

ABOUT AUBURN (24-5, 11-5): Leading scorer Samir Doughty (15.9) was held to eight points on 2-of-10 shooting at Kentucky and fellow senior guard J’Von McCormick (11.8 points, team-high 4.3 assists) is just 10-of-33 from the field the last three contests. The Tigers are pleased to have Isaac Okoro (12.8 points) back in the fold after losing two of three with him out of the lineup late last month due to a hamstring injury, and the freshman forward scored 19 combined in the last two outings. Senior center Austin Wiley is second in the SEC in rebounds (9.4) after grabbing 11.3 per game the last seven.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Texas A&M freshman F Yavuz Gultekin had seven points against LSU after going scoreless in his previous three games.

2. Auburn senior F Danjel Purifoy was 3-for-6 from 3-point range Saturday after going 0-for-8 in his previous three contests.

3. The Aggies have managed a .500 record despite being last in the SEC in scoring (62.1), field-goal percentage (39.8) and 3-point shooting (28.7).

PREDICTION: Auburn 78, Texas A&M 62