Dayton at No. 8 Auburn: Everything you need to know about Saturday’s game

Flyers play first true road game of season at SEC school

Who: Dayton (5-3) at Auburn (7-1)

When: 8:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Auburn Arena, Auburn, Ala.

TV/Radio: SEC Network/AM 1290, News 95.7 WHIO

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Probable Dayton starters

Josh Cunningham, 6-8, R-Sr., 14.8

Jalen Crutcher, 6-1, So., G, 13.5

Trey Landers, 6-5, Jr., G, 10.0

Ryan Mikesell, 6-7, R-Jr., F, 9.8

Jordan Davis, 6-2, So., G, 9.5

Probable Auburn starters

Jared Harper, 5-11, Jr., G, 13.9

Bryce Brown, 6-3, Sr., G, 16.0

Chuma Okeke, 6-8, So., F, 11.3

Samir Doughty, 6-4, Jr., G, 8.6

Anfernee McLemore, 6-7, Jr., F, 7.3

Series history: Dayton leads 4-1. Auburn won 73-60 last season at UD Arena. Brown and Harper each scored 11 in that game. Mustapha Heron, who transferred to St. John's, scored 21.

Coaches: Anthony Grant is 19-20 in his second season at Dayton. Bruce Pearl is 77-63 in five seasons at Auburn.

Last game: Dayton beat Detroit Mercy 98-59 on Tuesday. Auburn beat UNC Asheville 67-41 on Tuesday.

About Dayton: Obi Toppin leads the Flyers with 12.4 points per game off the bench. He ranks 81st in the country in two-point field-goal percentage (68.8). As a team, Dayton ranks 11th in that category (58.5). … After making 6 of 14 free throws in the previous three games, Cunningham made 6 of 8 against Detroit Mercy, raising his season percentage to 52.9. … Dayton has lost three straight games to Southeastern Conference teams since beating Alabama in the second game of the 2016-17 season. … Crutcher ranks second in the Atlantic 10 Conference with 6.3 assists per game. … Dayton shot a season-best 50 percent (9 of 18) from 3-point range against Detroit Mercy. It had not topped 36 percent in the previous six games.

About Auburn: The Tigers have a 90 percent chance of winning this game, according to KenPom.com, which predicts a 76-62 score. … Doughty played his freshman season at Virginia Commonwealth and averaged 9.0 points per game. He sat out last season after transferring. He scored 11 points in a victory against Dayton in Richmond but was scoreless against Dayton in a loss at UD Arena. … Auburn is one of seven programs in the country without a freshman on the roster. It ranks 36th in the country in experience. Dayton ranks 267th. … Brown and Harper made the All-SEC preseason second team.

Looking ahead: Dayton has fall term exams next week and doesn't play again until 3:30 p.m. Dec. 16 against Tulsa in the Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

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