AUBURN | It seems like every time Auburn gets on the postseason bubble it falls right back off.

Saturday night’s win at Alabama has the Tigers back in the postseason conversation but they'll need a win over visiting Mississippi State Tuesday night to keep it that way.

“It's crucial game for us to win because our RPI is down to 63 and theirs is at 112 even though they're 5-5 in the league and they're ahead of us in the SEC standings. A home loss to a team in that range really hurts your postseason,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said.

“Somehow we put ourselves at or near the bubble again and we'd like to try and stay on it a little bit longer than the last couple of times we've gotten to these Tuesdays.”

Auburn has lost two-straight Tuesday night games, 98-69 at South Carolina Jan. 24 and 87-77 against Tennessee last week. That same Vol squad lost 64-59 at MSU Saturday after leading by 19 points in the first half.

“It's the fourth time Mississippi State has come back from 10 or more down to win,” Pearl said. “That was really a great win for them because Tennessee went to Mississippi State probably playing as well as anybody in the league.”

Like Auburn, the Bulldogs are freshman heavy with three in the starting lineup including point guard Lamar Peters, who is averaging 11.9 points and 3.3 assists per game. He is shooting 40.9 percent from 3-point range.

“I'm really impressed with Peters,” Pearl said. “Ronnie (Johnson) and Jared (Harper) and Peters are as quick as anybody in the league. They're really quick. He gets downhill. He can finish. He's third in the league in 3-pointers made. He shoots a really good percentage. He's terrific. It will be a great matchup, an important matchup.”

MSU sophomore guard Quinndary Weatherspoon is averaging 17.0 points and 4.8 rebounds.

Auburn enters the game 15-8 overall and 4-6 in the SEC. The Bulldogs are 14-8 and 5-5. The Tigers are tied with Georgia, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt for ninth in the conference just two games behind Arkansas and Alabama, which are tied for fourth.

“Two games separate 12th and 4th,” Pearl said. “That does speak to the grind. And of course, we were picked 12th by ESPN. So every one of these are gold. Every one of these wins is really crucial. We’re excited about trying to take advantage again and putting ourselves in position.”

Tip-off at Auburn Arena is set for 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU.