SEC play is officially here for LSU Men’s Basketball, as the Tigers prepare to face Auburn on Wednesday, in what will be an exciting Top-25 matchup. Leading up to the game, I was able to talk to Callie Stanford of The Plainsman, who covers Auburn Men’s Basketball. With that said, here is the conversation I had with Callie, and what she had to say about this Auburn team.
Rauterkus: What has been the key to Auburn getting off to this hot start?
Stanford: This just feels really simple but, the depth and I know every broadcast they mention, “Hey Auburn has an 11 man bench.” I think just the fact that they’ve got so many guys that they can call up and it’s not like there’s any drop off when those guys come in because you’ve got Jabari and you’ve got Walker, but then you have faith in those guys coming up behind them and I think that keeps the momentum going.
Rauterkus: Jabari Smith has been the most talked about player for Auburn and the biggest NBA prospect, just how important is he to this team?
Stanford: I feel like, not that he’s quiet about it, but his importance is very understated. He’s not a guy that’s going to get hot and have a super, insane highlight reel, and every now and then he will, but he’s just very consistent. He reminds me of Sharife Cooper sometimes with his unselfishness. He’s not a ball hog, but he can also get it done from any point on the court, which is very, very fun to watch.
Rauterkus: Another player that stands out is Walker Kessler — the type of player not a lot of teams have. What kind of impact does he have?
Stanford: Walker is third in the nation in blocks, which is insane to me. He’s literally getting more blocks than some teams. He’s just insane, especially when the offense is struggling, he’s a guy that can keep them in the game because sometimes shooting in the beginning of the game is an issue. They’re working on getting him the ball, offensively Bruce [Pearl] doesn’t want him to just be the guy that rebounds, so soon he’ll be the guy making a difference on both sides of the ball.
Rauterkus: Will Wade said last week in his press conference that Auburn was the toughest place to play in the SEC. How much of an advantage does having the fans back and in full force give Auburn in games like this?
Stanford: Last year, I went to a few games, and it was a lottery so big, excited fans didn’t get to go and it was so boring. The few games I’ve been to this year, I wasn’t even getting there at tip-off but I could not get to the floor. That’s how full it’s been. So I think if anything that’s ramped up the students’ excitement, and they were excited about this team anyway, so it’s exponentially louder than it usually is I think.
Rauterkus: Alan Flanagan obviously was out for a while and has just come back. How much was his absence felt? And how big is it that he’s back in time for conference play?
Stanford: I don’t think his absence was felt at all. Everybody keeps talking about the depth and I think Wendell Green and KD Johnson kind of filled that gap that would have existed. Now that everybody is healthy, nobody knows who’s going to get less minutes. I think it will be a lot easier to keep the energy up with him and he adds so much because he’s shut down so many people on defense, he’s not scoring super crazy yet because I don’t think that he’s 100%. I’m excited to see him. I don’t think he’ll be 100% this week but he’s getting there.
Rauterkus: From the beginning of the season to now, how has this team changed and improved?
Stanford: Bruce loves to scream about offensive rebounding but I don’t even know if they’ve gotten much better. When they make mistakes, those are the mistakes that they make. I think it’s good to see them just getting more comfortable with each other. with the depth, those slower games allow for everybody to get everybody in, make sure everybody’s played with everybody.
Score Predictions
Rauterkus: LSU comes into this game playing well, but have yet to play against a team with as many weapons as Auburn. They’ve also yet to play in a true road game in front of a hostile environment. I think it will be an extremely competitive game but I think Auburn will pull away in the end. Auburn 82-76 LSU
Stanford: I think it will be a little closer, but I agree with what you are saying. I think this game has a good chance of going into overtime, but Auburn will close it out in the end. Auburn 82-79 LSU.
