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The No. 13 Arkansas Razorbacks (12-2, 1-1) are slated to hit the road to Auburn, Alabama, where they will take on the No. 22 Auburn Tigers (11-3, 1-1) in a Saturday night showdown.

Head coach Bruce Pearl's squad enters the contest having lost by 12 to unranked Georgia on the road earlier in the week, but the Tigers' home-court advantage is no joke, Razorback head coach Eric Musselman said Wednesday. Auburn opened its SEC slate last week with a win over Florida, in which it held the Gators under 60 points.

"I think everybody in the country knows that playing a road game at Auburn is as hard as anywhere in the country," Musselman said. "Coach Pearl has done a great job of creating an environment. I know the last home game they had, I watched it on TV, and it looked like they had a great student turnout even though we all know it’s still a school break time. But yeah, that’s a really, really hard place to play, and the record tells you so."

The Tigers have won the last 26 games played at Neville Arena. One would have to go back to Feb. 23, 2021, to find the last time they failed to secure a victory on the Plains.

Following a second-round exit from the NCAA Tournament as a No. 2 seed, Auburn once again finds itself in the AP Top 25, led by a formidable group of big men --- Johni Broome, Dylan Cardwell, Allen Flanigan, Chris Broome and Jaylin Williams.

"Certainly, No. 4 (Broome) and No. 44 Cardwell as a returner, 4 is a transfer," Musselman said. "Both of those guys are really good shot blockers, excellent around the rim. They're different players at that center spot, but both bring great qualities for Coach Pearl's team. In this league, you have to have bigs in order to win at a high level, and certainly with Auburn's frontline because Williams, No. 2, has played well, Chris Moore has done a really good job, No. 5. Flanigan played really well yesterday against Georgia. So, I think it is across the board their frontline is really good."

Arkansas continues to miss the services of star freshman Nick Smith Jr., who is out indefinitely with a right knee injury. He was not with the team during its game against Missouri, but instead seeing a knee specialist in Los Angeles, Musselman said Wednesday. Smith is expected to miss at least the rest of this month.

Once again, the Razorbacks struggled to look coherent on the offensive side of things Wednesday, trailing by as many as 17 before rallying to a seven-point deficit at halftime and a six-point victory. While consecutive slow starts have been agonizing, Musselman was encouraged by his team's responses.

"There’s a reason it’s 40 minutes," Musselman said. "I’d certainly rather be playing better in the second half and closing games out than playing really bad at the end of the game and playing great out of the gate."

Here are details on how to watch/listen, notes, projected lineups, stats, odds and more for Saturday's game between Arkansas and Auburn:

~ Saturday marks the 58th meeting between the two programs, and the 57th as conference foes. Arkansas is 13-14 on the road in the series but is 37-20 all-time, 13-4 in the last 17 and 3-0 in the last three.

~ The Hogs prevailed 80-76 over the No. 1 Tigers in last season's overtime thriller. It marked their ninth straight win and resulted in at court-storming at Bud Walton Arena.

~ Arkansas secured its biggest comeback victory of the season last game against Missouri, overcoming a 17-point hole to win 74-68. In Musselman's four seasons at the helm, it was the second-largest come-from-behind win, trailing only the Jan. 20, 2021, game, in which the Razorbacks trailed Auburn by 19 points.

~ The Hogs have trailed at halftime in six of their last 10, but they boast a 4-2 record in such games.

~ A win would make Arkansas .500 all-time against ranked opponents. The Razorbacks are 48-49 against top-25 teams and 4-15 on the road.

~ In Musselman's first nine games against ranked opponents at Arkansas, the team was 3-6. In the last 10, it is 7-3, including the home upset of Auburn and a Sweet 16 triumph over top-seeded Gonzaga.

~ Auburn is the third straight Arkansas opponent with a Tiger mascot.

Who: No. 13 Arkansas Razorbacks (12-2, 1-1 SEC) at No. 22 Auburn Tigers (11-3, 1-1 SEC)

When: Saturday, Jan. 7 at 7:30 p.m. CT

Where: Neville Arena - Auburn, Alabama

Television: SEC Network (Tom Hart and Dane Bradshaw)

Stream/Online: Watch ESPN

Radio: Learfield Razorback Sports Network (Chuck Barrett and Matt Zimmerman)

Gameday Info and How to Listen Online/Mobile: Razorback Gameday App

Sirius/XM: 113 (Sirius) / 190 (XM) || SXM App: Channel 961

#0 - G Anthony Black - Fr., 6'7", 198 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 34.3 min, 11.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.7 steals, 2.9 turnovers, 0.6 blocks, 49.1 fg%, 35 3fg%

#4 - G Davonte Davis - Jr., 6'4", 185 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 30.8 min, 8.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.6 steals, 1.6 turnovers, 0.2 blocks, 36 fg%, 18.9 3fg%

#1 - G Ricky Gouncil IV - Jr., 6'6", 205 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 35.4 min, 18.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.6 steals, 2.4 turnovers, 0.2 blocks, 48.1 fg%, 29.4 3fg%

#13 - G/F Jordan Walsh - Fr., 6'7", 205 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 23.9 min, 7.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.0 turnovers, 0.5 blocks, 50.0 fg%, 27.3 3fg%

#15 - F Makhi Mitchell - Sr., 6'9", 230 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 19.6 min, 7.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.3 steals, 0.9 turnovers, 1.5 blocks, 64.8 fg%

#1 - G Wendell Green Jr. - Jr., 5'11", 175 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 25 min, 12.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals, 3.2 turnovers, 0.1 blocks, 36.8 fg%, 26.3 3fg%

#12 - G Zep Jasper - Grad-Sr., 6'1", 185 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 18.4 min, 3.4 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.2 turnovers, 35.3 fg%, 28.1 3fg%

#5 - F Chris Moore - Jr., 6' 6”, 230 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 18.3 min, 6.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.6 turnovers, 0.4 blocks, 54.2 fg%, 50 3fg%

#2 - F Jaylin Williams - Sr., 6'8", 230 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 26.3 min, 9.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.2 turnovers, 0.9 blocks, 45.1 fg%, 38.5 3fg%

#4 - F Johni Broome - So., 6'10", 235 lbs.

2022-23 Stats per game: 24.5 min, 13.1 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.1 steals, 2 turnovers, 2.5 blocks, 50 fg%, 27.3 3fg%

Vegas: Arkansas is a +1.5-point underdog (BetSaracen)

ESPN: Arkansas has 48.8% chance to win

WATCH: Musselman previews matchup with No. 22 Auburn

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(some information courtesy of Arkansas and Auburn Communications)

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