AUBURN — Bryce Brown knows what Auburn has to do to stay competitive against Tennessee on Saturday.
"Matching their physicality," Bryce Brown said. "It's on us to match their physicality because they're a very physical team. They're going to try to go inside against us, so we're ready for all that."
That type of matchup hasn't gone well for the Tigers this season. The undersized roster most worrisome performances have been against big, tall, physical teams. Shorter at every position — especially with a 6-foot-7 starting center in Anfernee McLemore — Auburn has had to get creative to find ways to compete with the more physical opponents on its schedule such as Kentucky, LSU and Mississippi State.
From that perspective, Bruce Pearl said that makes Saturday the toughest matchup of Auburn's season.
It'd be even more complicated without the presence of Austin Wiley who has been out the last few weeks with a lower leg injury. On Thursday, Bruce Pearl continued to list Wiley as doubtful, but he did so with a more optimistic caveat than the last few weeks.
"Yes, there is hope Austin returns. He is still I would say probably doubtful for the game Saturday, but he’s not out," Pearl said. "He had a great workout yesterday, and we’ll see how he is today."
At times, Wiley's on-again, off-again status this season has prevented him from getting comfortable in the flow of the offense. With a big game for seeding purposes Saturday, the question was raised whether — if Wiley ends up being available on a limited basis — Pearl would consider not playing him in such a big game to avoid offensive clutter.
Pearl shot down that possibility.
"If he’s available for limited minutes, we’ll begin to get him back," Pearl said. "We’ll get him back for limited minutes and go from there. Limited minutes should not make the difference in the game. He can help us if he’s out there."
The main reason for that: Exactly what Brown mentioned at the start.
Tennessee will be one of the most physical rebounding teams Auburn has faced this year. Regardless of his output this season, Wiley brings that dimension to the Tigers' roster in a way nobody else is able to do.
"The inside scoring threat, the rebounding, the defense and getting him back," Pearl said. "But Horace Spencer and Anfernee McLemore have done a great job at the position. Horace’s defense, rebounding, his effort, his energy, his physicality, the chemistry when he’s out there on the floor, and Anfernee with his inside-outside ability."
