AUBURN | Anfernee McLemore was back from his dislocated ankle, torn ligaments and fractured tibia earlier this summer, in time to go through preseason practice. But there’s back, and then there’s BACK.

And Saturday against Georgia, McLemore looked closer to being all the way back for the first time this season as he came off the bench to score 15 points and lead the Tigers to a 93-78 win.

“That’s the closest he’s looked to a guy that was first-team all-defense and a key, key player for us a year ago,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “Anfernee gets to be doing what he’s doing there, and we’re a different club. Different club.”

McLemore was active on both ends of the floor. He finished with a team-high nine rebounds and added two blocked shots. He tied for the SEC lead with 73 blocked shots last season despite missing the final seven games due to his injury.

After averaging 2.7 blocks per game last year, McLemore is averaging 1.7 this season.

“Today, I felt like I had a lot of energy. My legs were under me. I got good recovery after the Ole Miss game,” McLemore said. “I felt bouncy today, and my leg was feeling good, my ankle was feeling good. I just feel like I could run better.”

McLemore has split playing time at the 5 (center) position with Austin Wiley this season. McLemore started the first 11 games while Wiley has started the past four.

“It’s a tremendous advantage as a play-caller,” said Pearl of having two centers with different skill sets. “Because, you’ve got a run game and a pass game. You’ve got Anfernee that can stretch the defense with the 3-ball, and you’ve got Austin who can get real-man points in the paint and screen and cover somebody else’s horse. We need both.”

Auburn, 12-3 overall and 1-1 in the SEC, returns to action Wednesday night at Texas A&M. Tip-off in Reed Arena is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT on ESPNU.