AUBURN | Bruce Pearl has a habit of talking a team up before Auburn plays them. He admitted as much in a press conference last week. But with another test coming up for his Tigers on Friday night against Texas Southern, this wasn't the time for him to stop.

"They've got the best program in the SWAC," Pearl said. "They do. He (Johnny Jones) is not afraid to play anybody."

Texas Southern has already gone on the road and pulled off an upset against a Power 5 opponent in Arizona State, and last season beat a ranked Florida team that would beat Auburn in Gainesville. Pearl knows the experience is there for them to challenge Auburn.

"He's got guys who have been with him for a few years," Pearl said. "They know how to play together. They guard really well. They're smart. They're handsy. They do a great job checking out. They only give up 25% second-chance points, and offensive rebounding is important for us. He's just a really, really solid coach that runs good stuff."

A major advantage that Auburn does have against the Tigers is the team's depth and fresh legs. No Auburn player has played more than 25 minutes in a game this season, while Texas Southern has five guys that average 25 or more minutes per outing. As Jaylin Williams puts it, possibly no team can match Auburn's talent at every position.

"We probably won't have the best single player on the court at each position," the forward said. "But two positions, everyone should be better than the other teams. Because everyone's not going to have two players at every position that's very talented."

And, coming off a rough loss against No. 3 Houston on Wednesday, Williams and his teammates know they will be hungry to face another ranked team and try to pull off the upset.

"They're probably locked in on the scout, locked in on us, on how to guard us," he said.

Auburn and Texas Southern tip off at 7 p.m. CT on Friday in Neville Arena. The game airs on SEC Network+ and ESPN+.