PREVIEW: Kentucky WBB returns home to take on Auburn

Kentucky beat Vanderbilt and Florida handily on the road, and they’ll have an opportunity to continue their momentum at home when the Cats take on Auburn (9-7, 0-3 SEC).

Get to know the Tigers before the game begins.

Bio Blast

After a two-game away streak, the ‘Cats are finally back at Historic Memorial Coliseum to face the Auburn Tigers. The Tigers are currently 0-3 in the SEC, gathering losses to No. 25 Ole Miss, No. 6 LSU, and a one-point loss to Arkansas. While the stats aren’t intimidating, Auburn has a handful of talented players Kentucky might need to prepare for, including Taliah Scott (who is currently out with an injury), DeYona Gaston, and Taylen Collins.

On Jan. 9, Auburn collected it’s seventh loss of the season to the Arkansas Razorbacks. Interestingly enough, the Tigers outscored Arkansas 21-8 in the first quarter, but weren’t able to hold on to the lead. To add insult to injury, this seems to be a trend for Auburn. Against LSU, Auburn outscored the (other) Tigers 16-11, then proceeded to lose by 10. In the fourth quarter against Norfolk State, the Tigers scored 22 points to the Spartans’ 15. However, it still wasn’t enough to come out with a win – Auburn lost 63-57.

Truthfully, it seems like this Auburn team struggles to finish. Despite multiple strong starts, the Tigers are 9-7, coming into Lexington on a four-game losing streak. While we’ve seen Kentucky struggle to start a game hot, we’ve never seen them struggle to finish (except maybe against North Carolina). These are two polar opposite teams, and Kentucky will need to have a strong start and end in order to come out on top.

Projected Auburn Starters

• #1 – Celia Sumbane, 8.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.7 APG
• #5 – DeYona Gaston, 22.3 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.0 APG
• #12 – Mar’shaun Bostic, 6.1 PPG, 2.5 PPG, 4.9 APG
• #14 – Taylen Collins, 9.1 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 2.0 APG
• #20 – Oyindamola Akinbolawa, 3.9 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 0.5 APG

Scouting Report

Auburn has struggled mightily to begin their season, and a big reason for that is that sophomore Taliah Scott, who was at Arkansas last season, suffered an injury early in the season. While she is hopeful to return to early in SEC play, it appears that she will not make her return to the court against Kentucky.

She was averaging 20.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game before injuring her wrist against Cal on November 22nd.

As for the healthy Tigers to keep an eye on, fifth-year senior DeYona Gaston is the main name to look out for. The 6-foot-2 forward is averaging 22.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. She spent the first four years of her collegiate career at Texas before transferring to Auburn this offseason.

Two other players who could give Kentucky some trouble are forwards Taylen Collins and Celia Sumbane. Collins averages 9.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, while Sumbane puts up 8.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per contest.

Projected Kentucky Starters

#3 – Georgia Amoore

5-FOOT-6 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT

17.9 PPG – 7.2 APG – 2.5 RPG

#7 – Teonni Key

6-FOOT-4 – FORWARD – JUNIOR

11.7 PPG – 8.9 RPG – 2.3 BPG

#10 – Dazia Lawrence

5-FOOT-8 – GUARD – REDSHIRT SENIOR

14.1 PPG – 2.4 APG – 2.1 RPG

#13 – Clara Strack

6-FOOT-5 – CENTER – SOPHOMORE

15.3 PPG – 10.0 RPG – 3.3 APG

#32 – Amelia Hassett

6-FOOT-3 – FORWARD – JUNIOR

11.5 PPG – 9.6 RPG – 2.1 APG

Initial Availability Report

Starting this season in conference play, SEC teams are required to release an availability report, listing players and their injury statuses for their upcoming game.

Here is the initial report for Kentucky-Auburn:

The final availability report will be available closer to game time.

**Note: Kentucky’s Dominika Paurová is not listed as “Out” because she is completely exempt from the season due to an ACL tear she suffered in the offseason. Jordan Obi, who also suffered a lower leg injury in the summer, may return to the hardwood this season, hence why her name appears on the availability report.**

How to Watch/Listen

Place	Tipoff	TV	Radio	Live Stats
Historic Memorial Coliseum (Lexington, KY)	3 p.m. ET	SEC Network (Sam Gore and Tamika Catchings)	630 WLAP, 790 WKRD (Darren Headrick)	StatBroadcast

Follow Along with KSR’s LIVE BLOG

Unable to watch the game? Don’t worry — we’ll be providing real-time updates throughout to keep you informed on the action. Follow along with KSR’s LIVE BLOG, which will get rolling on the website an hour before the game starts.

Join The Discussion on KSBoard

Want to interact with the KSR crew during tonight’s game? Consider joining the conversation on KSBoard, where we’ll be sharing live updates while also answering questions and providing real-time analysis (and probably complaining about the officiating).