No. 5/5 Kentucky Wildcats (20-3, 11-1 SEC)
vs.
Auburn Tigers (12-13, 3-9 SEC)
Wed., Feb. 23, 2005 – 8:00 p.m.
Rupp Arena – Lexington, Ky.
TV: JP Sports
Kentucky looks to clinch a share of its 11th SEC Eastern Division title against a depleted Auburn squad in Rupp Arena Wednesday. It would be UK?s sixth straight SEC East crown and the seventh under Tubby Smith, who has won more divisional titles (6) than any other coach since the league expanded in 1992.
The Wildcats have already clinched a first-round bye in next month?s SEC Tournament in Atlanta. Since the league split into divisions in 1992, Kentucky has avoided playing in the first round of every conference tournament – finishing no worse than second in the East since 1992.
Kentucky earned its 50th 20-win season with a 94-78 win over Mississippi State Saturday. Freshman point guard Rajon Rondo had eight steals in the win, tying the UK single-game steals record set by Wayne Turner in 1997. For the first time in six years, seven Wildcats scored in double figures, as all five starters plus reserves Ramel Bradley and Ravi Moss reached the 10-point mark.
Scouting the Tigers
Auburn dropped below .500 on the season (12-13, 3-9 SEC) with a 57-45 loss at Georgia Saturday. The Tigers have lost nine of their last 12 games overall, with their last win coming at South Carolina on Feb. 12.
Toney Douglas leads the Tigers in scoring with 16.9 points. Ian Young contributes 14.0 ppg, while Quinnel Brown leads the team in rebounding (6.1 rpg) and is third in scoring with 12.9 points.
Jeff Lebo is in his first season at Auburn after two seasons at Tennessee- Chattanooga and four years as head coach at Tennessee Tech. He holds a 127- 76 career record in his seventh season as a head coach.
Series History
This is the 96th meeting between Kentucky and Auburn, with UK holding a 78-17 advantage in the series. Kentucky holds a 40-2 record against the Tigers in Lexington, and a 19-2 record vs. AU in Rupp Arena.
Auburn?s last win in Lexington came on Jan. 9, 1988, when the unranked Tigers came to the Bluegrass and handed topranked Kentucky a 53-52 loss.
The Cats have won 19 of the last 20 meetings, dating back to the 1989-90 season. Auburn?s last win came on Jan. 11, 2000 as the No. 4 Tigers earned a 66-63 victory over 20th-ranked Kentucky on the Plains.
Kentucky coach Tubby Smith is 9-2 alltime against Auburn, including an 8-1 record while at UK.
This is the first time Auburn’s Jeff Lebo has faced Kentucky as a head coach. However, Lebo is 4-9 overall against the Wildcats, all as an assistant. Lebo was an assistant South Carolina under Eddie Fogler when the Gamecocks swept Kentucky en route to the 1997 SEC Championship. Sixth-ranked USC downed No. 3 Kentucky 72-66 in Rupp Arena on the last day of the regular season.
Probable Starters
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG Notes F 44 Chuck Hayes 6-6 242 Sr. 10.7 8.6 12 pts, 6 rebs against Bulldogs F 24 Kelenna Azubuike 6-5 208 Jr. 14.3 4.8 15 pts, 7 rebs vs. MSU C 33 Randolph Morris 6-10 266 Fr. 8.8 4.0 Team-high 17 points in win over MSU G 4 Rajon Rondo 6-1 171 Fr. 8.6 *2.9 Tied UK record for steals (8) vs. MSU G 22 Patrick Sparks 6-0 180 Jr. 11.2 *4.1 14 pts, 2 assts, 3 rebs vs. MSU AUBURN Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG Notes F 21 Quinnel Brown 6-6 210 Sr. 12.9 6.1 19 pts, 13 rebs at USC on Feb. 12 G 2 Daniel Hayles 6-5 215 Fr. 6.4 3.3 Shooting 51.7% FGs G 24 Nathan Watson 6-3 200 Sr. 11.1 6.0 Leads team in steals (39) G 23 Toney Douglas 6-1 190 Fr. 16.9 5.3 2-for-22 FGs in last two games G 3 Ian Young 6-3 200 Sr. 14.0 *4.2 13 pts, 6 rebs vs. Georgia *assists per game
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