An already undersized Auburn lineup will face its first test since the loss of center Anfernee McLemore.
The No. 12 Tigers (23-4, 11-3 SEC) will start either Horace Spencer or Chuma Okeke at center tonight against Alabama (7:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network) and lean on both of them and starting power forward Desean Murray to play more minutes to account for the loss of McLemore's nearly 20 minutes per game.
"We hope eight is enough," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. "I told the team, I said, 'If I told you that I was going to make an adjustment in the lineup and we need Desean to play six or seven more minutes, Chuma to play six or seven more minutes, Horace to stay out of foul trouble long enough to play five or six more minutes, would that be a good thing or a bad thing?' And I think everybody said it would be a good thing.
"What's wrong with a little more Chuma? What's wrong with a little bit more Desean, a little bit more Horace? Nothing. What's wrong is less Anfernee. That's what's wrong."
No single player will replace what McLemore did for Auburn, particularly as a shot blocker. Spencer has some skill in that area, but has struggled with foul trouble while Okeke is a viable outside shooter like McLemore, but is not as skilled a defender on the interior.
Alabama challenged Auburn with its size in a 76-71 win last month, one of a program-record five victories over ranked opponents for the Crimson Tide (17-10, 8-6 SEC), this season.
Pearl believes Alabama is the best defensive team in the league.
"They're huge," Pearl said. "I think they're the most talented team in the league. They're deep, they're long. A lot of things that they do have been some of the things that have bothered us. Finding ways to score on them are going to be difficult."
Offensively Auburn will rely on its guards even more to shoot well from the outside.
Bryce Brown (16.4), Mustapha Heron (16.1) and Jared Harper (13.5) give Auburn the SEC's only trio of players to average more than 13 points per game this season and all are capable from beyond the arc, mid-range and driving to the hoop.
They'll also be challenged defensively by Collin Sexton (18.1 points, 3.5 assists), who missed the earlier matchup this season due to an abdominal injury.
"He's an incredible offensive weapon," Pearl said. "I've seen him play for years in high school and AAU ball, an incredible talent. It gives them another piece - like they need another piece. They've got Danta Hall and they've got two or three other really good big kids, they got lots of depth."
Auburn is 13-1 at home this season and another sellout crowd is a big reason why the Tigers are 7.5-point favorites despite the loss of their starting center. What should make tonight's crowd even more raucous is the awarding of the Foy-ODK Sportsmanship Trophy to Auburn's football team for winning last year's Iron Bowl during halftime, which will be a first during Pearl's tenure as basketball coach.
"I am so proud of the fact that our football team is going to get that trophy here and our fans get a chance to love on those guys a little bit," Pearl said. "Tthey've been here, they've been so supportive of us all year. We're going to need all that support, we're going to need all that."
James Crepea is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @JamesCrepea.