Why rebounding may be the biggest key to victory for Auburn against Tennessee
Auburn is currently on a four-game winning streak, but will be faced with another steep road challenge on Saturday. The Tigers are set to face Tennessee, who is coming off impressive road wins against Alabama and Georgia.
The Vols have had an up and down season, but the hallmarks of Rick Barnes’ program have stayed the same. Tennessee plays physical, and this season, the Vols are the best offensive rebounding team in the country by percentage. They’ve rebounded 44.7% of their misses this season, per KenPom, and are averaging more than 12 total rebounds per game more than their opponents. While Tennessee hasn’t been the most efficient team from the floor this season, getting extra possessions from offensive rebounds has led to much of its success on offense. "They had 26 offensive rebounds at Georgia. If they get one less offensive rebound, Georgia probably wins the game," Auburn head coach Steven Pearl said of Tennessee. “It’s not just offensive rebounds. In their SEC wins, 20 offensive rebounds, and they’re scoring, like, 18 second chance points off those. It’s turning into points.” Tennessee is shooting less than 50% from 2-point range in SEC play, per KenPom, but it’s able to rebound many of its misses near the basket. The Vols rank last in the SEC in 3-pointers attempted, but have the best 3-point percentage in the conference during league play. They don’t shoot 3s often, but offensive rebounds can often lead to open looks. Tennessee has multiple players on the perimeter capable of making those shots, meaning it will be critical for Auburn to prevent those open looks from happening. “If winning is important to our guys, we’ll physically check out every possession,” Pearl said. “If it’s not, then we’ll look silly.” Auburn faced a similar challenge on the glass against Florida, but the Tigers held their own in that game. The Gators grabbed 17 offensive rebounds against Auburn, but only converted those into 11 second chance points. In Tennessee’s win over Georgia, it grabbed 26 offensive rebounds and scored 24 second chance points. In a game the Vols only won by one point, those rebounds were the difference. If Auburn allows Tennessee to rebound over 50% of its misses like Georgia did, it will be almost impossible for the Tigers to win in Knoxville. Being competitive on the glass may be Auburn’s most important key to victory, considering Tennessee’s offense hasn’t been as efficient as Florida’s. Saturday’s matchup between the Tigers and Vols is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on ESPN. Peter Rauterkus is an Auburn Sports Reporter for AL.com covering football, basketball and all things Auburn sports. He joined AL.com in July 2024. Prior to joining the sports staff at AL.com, Peter spent time...
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