Auburn men’s basketball is just two points away from being undefeated, with their only loss this season coming on Nov. 16, a 73-72 defeat to then-No. 1 Houston.
Beyond that, No. 22 Auburn (4-1) has feasted on small schools in its four wins. That won’t be the case Monday night at Michelob Ultra Arena near Las Vegas, when the Tigers face Oregon in both teams’ first game of the second annual Players Era men’s tournament.
Auburn won’t have leading scorer and rebounder Keyshawn Hall in the lineup against the Ducks. Hall, who is averaging 23.3 points and 11 rebounds per game, suffered a lateral foot sprain late in the second half of the Tigers’ loss to Houston. He missed the team’s 112-66 win over Jackson State on Nov. 19.
The 6-foot-7 transfer from UCF won’t be rushed back, Auburn head coach Steven Pearl told AL.com last week.
“I mean, with him out, just got to step up. It’s the next guy up mentality and we’re trying to win it all,” Auburn’s Elyjah Freeman said. “All that matters is trying to win and stopping them from scoring.”
Freeman is among six Tigers’ regular players who average double figures in scoring per game. Auburn is averaging 93.4 points per game while shooting 50.2% from the field this season.
Both teams will play back-to-back games this week, and potentially a third game in three days if they reach the Players Era third-place or championship game on Wednesday, Nov. 26.
Oregon (4-0) is the defending Players Era tournament champion. The Ducks won the inaugural edition last year with wins over Texas A&M, San Diego State and an 83-81 upset of then-No. 9 Alabama.
Oregon took home the $1.5 million in NIL money awarded to the tournament’s first-place team.
The Ducks haven’t played since last Monday, Nov. 17, an 87-75 win over Oregon State. They are 28-9 in games played in Las Vegas under head coach Dana Altman, with 23 wins from the former Pac-12 men’s basketball tournament, last played in March of 2024.
Oregon is led by center Nate Bittle, whose late put-back dunk with five seconds to play against Alabama in the Players Era championship game last year gave the Ducks the win.
This year, Bittle is averaging 18.8 points and 9.8 rebounds to lead the Ducks. The focal point of opposing defenses, Bittle has two 20-point games this season and a pair of double-doubles.
Oregon also has two other experienced players in their third seasons in the program. Point guard Jackson Shelstad has scored 22 points in each of the Ducks’ last two games, and forward Kwame Evans Jr. had a career-high 14 rebounds and made 10 of 14 free throws against Oregon State.
“That’s what you expect from experience — guys that have played for you,” Altman told Lookout Eugene-Springfield. “They’ve been in big games. They’ve been in NCAA tournaments.”
The Ducks have not shot the ball well overall to start the season, at 40.4%, but are holding opponents to a 38.3% from the field.
–Field Level Media
