Kentucky-Auburn, Part III: Can UK complete sweep of Tigers?
Seth Greenberg explains that Kentucky’s frontcourt propelled them to the Elite Eight, and Jay Williams heaps praise on the Wildcats’ defense. (1:18)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Auburn took its worst loss of the season the last time the Tigers matched up against Kentucky.
That 80-53 loss in Lexington in late February might have been the best thing to happen to the Tigers. They haven’t lost since.
The Tigers since then have two victories against Tennessee and one against Kansas and North Carolina. Their 97-80 Sweet 16 win over the Tar Heels on Friday night sent the Tigers, the No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region, to their third meeting of the season with Kentucky, with the stakes in this one higher than in the previous two.
The winner will advance to the Final Four, which would be a first for Auburn.
Auburn will take the longest winning streak in Division I, 11 games, into Sunday’s game.
“They physically overwhelmed us in Lexington,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said, speaking of a game when PJ Washington had a game-high 24 points and Keldon Johnson ripped down 17 boards. “We actually went into that game playing pretty well, and we got manhandled.
“The lesson there was we didn’t [let the loss linger] because we respect Kentucky so much and we recognize they had a great night. These guys weren’t destroyed. Kentucky really beat us. We didn’t play great, but we got it handed to us because they played so well.”
Kentucky also beat the Tigers 82-80 in January at Auburn.
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“We know they’re the [real] deal,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “We were lucky to win down there. They missed a layup. We played pretty good and they missed some shots they normally make at our place, which led us to a pretty good win.
“We respect them. We respect their players and what they do and how they play and how hard they play. We’re a little different than them. They’re going to take 35, 40 3s. That’s what they do. We’re not going to shoot that many, but we’ll take them if they’re there.”
Auburn had one of its worst shooting games of the season the last time out against Kentucky. Auburn made just 30 percent of its 3-point shots and 33 percent overall.
The Tigers have been sharpshooters recently. They made 46 percent (17-of-37) from beyond the arc against North Carolina, after making 43 percent (13-of-30) in the previous round’s win over Kansas.
But Pearl said he doesn’t expect the Tigers on Sunday to score like they did against North Carolina or Kansas, when they had 89 points. Auburn will also be without sophomore forward Chuma Okeke, who tore his ACL in his left knee in the Tigers’ Sweet 16 game.
“Coach Cal does a phenomenal job with his defense,” Pearl said. “I don’t think we’ll get near 97 or near 80.”