Scouting Auburn

NC State basketball is hoping for a déja vu moment in earning another key signature win.

The Wolfpack needed one last year when then-No. 7 Auburn came to PNC Arena. NCSU point guard Markell Johnson had 27 points and five three-pointers, and combo guard Braxton Beverly and wing Devon Daniels combined for 30 points in a 78-71 win.

Auburn went on to reach the Final Four and was close to topping Virginia to advance to the title game, falling 63-62. Three starters departed the program from last year, including the Tigers’ veteran backcourt duo. However, Auburn still has four senior starters this season and is ranked No. 12 by the Associated Press. They are one of the last remaining unbeaten teams (9-0) in college basketball.

NCSU (8-2) travels to Auburn for a 9 p.m. tipoff Thursday on ESPN2.

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Auburn has not played a Power Five school in its first nine games.

The Tigers played three close games this season, with a one-point win at South Alabama Nov. 12, a three-point overtime victory against Furman Dec. 5 and a 67-61 win versus Saint Louis last Saturday.

Freshman small forward Isaac Okoro, who NC State recruited out of Powder Springs (Ga.) McEachern High, has been a pleasant boost to the Tigers’ lineup. He is shooting 57 percent from the field and has scored in double figures in every game but one, when he had nine against Richmond. He is rising up several NBA mock drafts.

Rankings

In the NET rankings done by the NCAA, Auburn is currently No. 8 in the country. KenPom.com has Auburn at No. 17, and ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Tigers at No. 13.

The Tigers are ranked No. 1 in the old RPI formula used by the NCAA — according to RealTimeRPI.com.

Shooting

Memphis transfer Jamal Johnson leads the way at 44.4 percent on three-pointers, and AU has four players who have made at least 12 shots from beyond the arc this season. Auburn is shooting 46.8 percent from the field, 33.6 percent on three-pointers and a lowly 63.3 percent at the free throw line. Point guard J’Von McCormick is just 6 of 21 at the free throw line.

Junior guard Samir Doughty is the most likely of the perimeter players to fire it up. He has attempted at least five three-pointers in six of the nine contests. He went 6 of 8 against Cal State Northridge (and former Pack coach Mark Gottfried) in a 116-70 win Nov. 15. He also made 5 of 9 from beyond the arc in the 84-59 win over New Mexico Nov. 25.

Rebounding

Senior big man Austin Wiley anchors the boards for Auburn at 8.9 per game. Four other players are chipping in at least four rebounds a contest, which is helping Auburn average 43.0 per game, seventh best in the country. The rebounding margin has been plus-7.8.

UNCG hurt NC State with 18 offensive rebounds Sunday. Auburn is averaging 13.8 offensive rebounds per contest, which is 10th best in the country. Wiley leads the way with 25 offensive rebounds on the season.

Defense

The Tigers are allowing 67.1 points per game with opponents shooting 40.5 percent from the field and 29.5 percent on three-pointers. Auburn is averaging 6.6 steals and 6.2 blocks per game.

Wiley and senior Anfernee McLemore are both quality shot blockers, and freshman Babatunde Akingbola was an accomplished rim protector in high school. Okoro is also a quality two-way small forward thanks to his toughness on the defensive end.

Depth

Auburn played four players off the bench for at least 13 minutes against Saint Louis in its last game. Of the four, McLemore is a former starter and averaging 7.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 19.9 minutes per game. The 6-7, 220-pounder had 73 blocks in 2017-18 when he filled in for the suspended Purifoy and Wiley.

Johnson, who is the son of former Alabama star and NBA player Buck Johnson, chips in 5.3 points in 13.2 minutes a game. Freshman wings Allen Flanigan and Devan Cambridge round out the rotation.

Auburn fifth-year senior Samir Doughty could be called an unlikely “star” for the Tigers.

The former Rivals.com three-star prospect in the class of 2015 picked St. John’s out of high school, but then ended up at VCU. The Philadelphia native redshirted his first year with the Rams. He became a solid role player his rookie season at VCU, averaging 9.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, and he shot 28.4 percent from three-point land.

Following the coaching change with the Rams, he transferred to Auburn and had to sit out for a second time in his college career, forfeiting a season of eligibility. He settled in as a quality spot-up shooter, making 42.5 percent of his three-point tries and averaging 7.3 points a contest during the Tigers' Final Four run a year ago.

The 6-4, 195-pounder has erupted for Auburn in his last year of college basketball. He leads the team with 17.3 points per contest, and is shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 37.7 percent on three-pointers. He had a season-high 33 against Cal State Northridge and added 22 in the win over Richmond. He has reached 20-plus points in four different games. Doughty only reached double figures in 10 contests last year.

NC State

PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 175, Sr., 13.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 6.2 apg, 1.9 spg)

SG — C.J. Bryce (6-5, 210, 5th-Sr., 15.9 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.8 spg)

G — 10 Braxton Beverly (6-0, 180, Jr., 9.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.8 apg)

PF — 4 Jericole Hellems (6-7, 205, So., 11.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.9 apg, 1.1 spg) or 31 Pat Andree (6-8, 220, Sr., 7.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 0.2 apg)

C — 15 Manny Bates (6-11, 230, R-Fr., 6.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 0.4 apg, 3.4 bpg)

Auburn

PG — 5 J’Von McCormick (6-0, 185, Sr., 9.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 6.3 apg, 1.2 spg)

SG — 10 Samir Doughty (6-4, 195, Sr., 17.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.3 spg)

SF — 23 Isaac Okoro (6-6, 225, Fr., 13.7 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.0 bpg)

F — 3 Danjel Purifoy (6-7, 230, Sr., 9.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.4 apg)

C — 50 Austin Wiley (6-11, 260, Sr., 10.7 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 0.3 apg, 1.3 bpg)

31 Rivals.com ranking for freshman small forward Isaac Okoro in the class of 2019, who was a NC State recruiting target. He is the second-highest ranked player on the roster behind senior center Austin Wiley.

169 Career blocks for 6-7 backup senior post player Anfernee McLemore.

8,210 Average attendance for Auburn for its four home games this season.

Auburn senior center Austin Wiley was expected to be in the NBA by now, but that dream has become a little bit iffy thanks to a roller coaster experience with the Tigers.

Wiley was a Rivals.com five-star prospect coming out of Spain Park High in Hoover, Ala. HIs mother is former Auburn star and 1992 USA Olympian Vickie Orr, and his father, Aubrey Wiley, led the SEC in rebounding in 1993-94 for the Tigers. It was a foregone conclusion that Austin Wiley was going to Auburn.

The 6-11, 260-pounder had a promising freshman season after enrolling early in 2016-17. He averaged 8.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He then was suspended for his sophomore year as part of the FBI investigation, along with teammate Danjel Purifoy. Neither player came back last year the same player and were relegated to the bench.

Wiley is starting to show his past form this season, averaging 10.7 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in just 19.7 minutes a contest. He has grabbed at least 10 rebounds in four games, and has three double-doubles on his resume. He went for 18 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in 22 minutes during the 79-65 win over Richmond Nov. 26.

NC State redshirt freshman Manny Bates also knows what it is like to miss a season and bounce back. He underwent shoulder surgery last year and redshirted. Bates is a fearsome shot blocker, and he will be going against one of the biggest post players he’s faced in his young Wolfpack career in Wiley.

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