The heavy-hitting nonconference slate that Auburn basketball has faced the past two seasons looked a hint lighter entering the 2026-27 campaign, but an early test headlined the biggest matchups.
No. 11 Arizona, which waxed Auburn last season in Tucson, comes to the Plains for a notable nonconference bout Friday, Nov. 13 (8 p.m. CT, ESPN2), at Neville Arena, closing out a home-and-home series for the Tigers against one of the sport’s premier programs.
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Can Auburn deliver a significant upset? Here’s our score prediction for the contest, as well as three questions the Tigers must answer for victory.
What we’re watching: 3 questions for Auburn basketball’s Arizona matchup
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How can red-hot Tahaad Pettiford open up Auburn’s offense? The SEC’s leading scorer resides on the Plains, with Pettiford averaging 22 points per game. He’s also without a turnover two games in, and with the Tigers needing scoring from everywhere, Pettiford has a chance for a high-impact passing performance.
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How does Auburn’s size handle biggest test yet? Steven Pearl added two 7-footers to his frontcourt this offseason, but both big men are technically smaller than Arizona’s 7-foot-2 Motiejus Krivas. He’s averaging 18 points and 8 rebounds so far, as well as a Big 12-leading 2.7 blocks.
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Is Auburn’s advantage against Arizona on the perimeter? Arizona’s had one of the worst opponent 3-point percentages in the country through three games, with foes making a combined 38% of their attempts from distance. Auburn has hit 40% of its triples to this point, including a 12-for-26 line in its opener.
Our score prediction for Auburn basketball vs Arizona
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Score prediction: No. 11 Arizona 98, Auburn 86 (OT)
While Pearl’s second Auburn squad looks much better than the first, it’ll need an emphatic 40 minutes against one of the best programs in the nation to secure a victory. That doesn’t mean it can’t, or won’t, deal a loss to the Wildcats, but Auburn looks like David facing Goliath on its home turf.
Adam Cole is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at acole@gannett.com or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @colereporter. To support Adam’s work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.
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This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Can Auburn basketball upset ranked Arizona? Our score prediction for Friday’s game
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