Texas A&M vs. Auburn Men's Basketball
Texas A&M center Tonny Trocha-Morelos (10) and guard Alex Robinson (3) cover Auburn guard KC Ross-Miller (12) Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, in Auburn, Ala. (Julie Bennett/ jbennett@al.com)
(JULIE BENNETT)
WHAT Auburn men's basketball (12-16, 4-11 SEC) at Texas A&M (19-8, 10-5)
WHEN Tonight, 7:30 p.m. CT
WHERE Reed Arena in College Station, Texas
TV SEC Network
LINE Texas A&M by 12
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS
Auburn -- G K.C. Ross-Miller, G KT Harrell, G Malcolm Canada, F Jordon Granger, F Cinmeon Bowers
Texas A&M -- G Alex Caruso, G Jordan Green, G Danuel House, F Jalen Jones, F Kourtney Roberson
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Auburn -- Starting guard Antoine Mason left the team Thursday to be with his father, Anthony, who passed away this morning after suffering a heart attack earlier this month. Mason had been a go-to scoring option in recent games until failing to score a field goal for the first time this season in Tuesday's loss to LSU. Senior Malcolm Canada and freshman TJ Lang will likely see increased roles in Mason's absence. KT Harrell is the SEC's leading scorer with 17.7 points per game.
Texas A&M -- Danuel House averages 15.4 points per game to lead the Aggies this season. He scored a career-high 28 points against No. 18 Arkansas Tuesday and is seventh in the nation from the 3-point line, where he holds a 43.8 shooting percentage. Jalen Jones could also complicate things for the Tigers. The junior is averaging 13.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest this season.
OFF THE BENCH
Auburn -- The Aggies have a big size advantage in this game, so look for 7-foot-2 freshman center Trayvon Reed to receive a bump in playing time. He is averaging just 6.4 minutes per game, but Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl is being patient with his development. The Tigers need more height in the paint, where they've been outscored 114-42 in the last two games.
Texas A&M -- Freshman Alex Robinson scored 11 points against Arkansas off the bench for the Aggies and has proved to be a reliable reserve option. The double-digit scoring performance was Robinson's first since he scored 12 points against Auburn last month on 6-of-9 shooting.
WHY IT MATTERS
Auburn has lost nine of its last 11 games and is riding a six-game losing streak at home... Texas A&M has won 10 of its last 13 games... The Aggies defeated the Tigers 71-61 on Jan. 27 and is looking to secure an NCAA Tournament bid... Auburn currently sits in 13th place in the SEC standings with three games to play before the SEC Tournament in Nashville, while Texas A&M is in a tied for third place with Ole Miss. The top four seeds receive a double bye in the tournament while the bottom four play the opening night, and the winners return to play the following day.
PREDICTION Texas A&M 68, Auburn 57