Auburn @ Kentucky preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 1, 2020 ) Kentucky 66, Auburn 75

No. 15 Auburn should have its entire lineup healthy as it takes one more shot at an SEC regular-season title Saturday afternoon when the Tigers visit ninth-ranked and first-place Kentucky. Auburn welcomed the return of standout freshman Isaac Okoro (hamstring) to the lineup in Tuesday’s 67-58 victory over Ole Miss and it remains two games behind the red-hot Wildcats with three to go before the SEC tournament.

Okoro missed the previous three games, including a pair of losses, before contributing 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting in 27 minutes against Ole Miss and Tigers senior center Austin Wiley told reporters: “Isaac is a big part of our team on both ends of the floor. It’s just great to see him out there playing.” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl liked his team’s defensive effort Tuesday and the Tigers will need another similar performance to sweep the season series against Kentucky after earning a 75-66 win at home on Feb. 1 while holding the Wildcats to 40.8 percent from the field. Kentucky has won seven games in a row and 11 of 12 - the only loss at Auburn - after grinding out a 69-60 victory at Texas A&M on Tuesday as sophomore guard Immanuel Quickley poured in a career-high 30 points to boost his season average to a team-high 16.2. “It’s real big, especially when your team needs it,” Quickley told reporters after draining 8-of-12 from 3-point range Tuesday. “You always want to come up big, but it’s really a credit to all my teammates. Like I said, they put me in positions to be successful.”

TIME: 3:45 p.m. ET. TV: CBS

ABOUT AUBURN (24-4, 11-4 SEC): Senior Samir Doughty leads the team in scoring (16.1) and had his lowest output (14) in 10 games Tuesday, but Pearl lauded the 6-4 guard’s defense on talented scorer Breein Tyree (3-of-19 shooting). Okoro is second on the team in scoring (13.0) and connects on 51.8 percent from the field while senior point guard J’Von McCormick has struggled shooting the past two games (5-for-19), but averages 11.8 points and a team-high 4.5 assists overall. Freshman forward Jaylin Williams has joined the rotation of late, averaging seven points the past two contests, and Pearl told reporters Tuesday: “You could see his confidence, his ability.”

ABOUT KENTUCKY (23-5, 13-2): Quickley is averaging 25.7 points the last three games, making 14-of-22 from behind the arc in the stretch, and sophomore forward EJ Montgomery told reporters after Tuesday’s win: “Super hot, super hot fire. If you touch him, you’re going to get burned.” Freshman guard Tyrese Maxey is scoring 15.7 per game over the last six games to push his season mark to 13.9 - just two points overall in 28 games behind junior forward Nick Richards, who tops the team in rebounds (7.9) and blocks (2.2). Sophomore point guard Ashton Hagans drained 10-for-20 shots from the floor the last three games and averages 11.8 points along with an SEC-high 6.5 assists.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Montgomery registered eight points and a season-high matching 10 rebounds against Texas A&M on Tuesday.

2. Wiley recorded his fourth double-double in six games Tuesday and is second in the SEC in rebounding (9.4).

3. Kentucky leads the league and entered Friday third in the nation in free-throw shooting percentage (79.3).

PREDICTION: Kentucky 78, Auburn 70