Auburn Mens basketball HOST Mercer Tonight!! from OA NEWS

[AUSportTalk 4]

The Mercer Bears, of the Atlantic Sun Conference, lost games to Harvard, USC Upstate and Kennesaw State last season.

Yet you won’t find the Auburn’s men’s basketball team, or any team the rest of the season for that matter, looking past them.

Why? Not that Auburn is a college basketball power of any sorts, but the Bears have a history of giant killing.

Auburn takes on Mercer tonight at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum. Tip off is set for 7 p.m.

“They will be coming in with a lot of confidence here when they play us,” coach Jeff Lebo said.

A win three days earlier against a similar SEC foe up the road will do that.

Mercer shocked preseason SEC West favorite Alabama on Sunday, 72-69, in the Crimson Tide’s home opener. But the shock may have been a bit subdued for the circumstances, as Mercer did the same in its season opener last season, when it toppled No. 18 USC by 17 points on the road.

It hasn’t necessarily translated into strong play within its conference, as the Bears finished 11-19 in 2007-08, but something about big-conference teams seems to bring the best out of them.

Auburn experienced it first-hand last year when Mercer hung around and wouldn’t let Lebo dip into his reserves in a 68-59 struggle.

He expects the same this time around.

“What is impressive about them,” Lebo said, “is their ability to rebound.”

Even with freshman sensation JaMychal Green underneath, the Crimson Tide was outrebounded by 18 against the Bears on Sunday. Mercer forward Daniel Emerson has played a big part in that, as he’s grabbed 25 rebounds, while averaging 17 points per game in Mercer’s first two games, both wins, of the season.

Guard James Florence, though, has really caught Lebo’s eye.

Florence has struggled from the field this season, but has made his opponents pay at the foul line. The Bears’ leading scorer, averaging 21 points per game, has already attempted 20 free throws this season.

“He jumps into you,” Lebo said. “He has all the smart, crafty, veteran plays with the ball.”

After looking at the tape of Friday night’s season-opening win over Missouri State, Lebo was impressed with the Tigers’ defensive effort, which resulted in Missouri State’s being forced to take a number of tough shots from the perimeter.

The Tigers’ health, however, is still a concern, as freshman guard Frankie Sullivan (high ankle sprain) is still out, and the status of Rasheem Barrett and DeWayne Reed is still up in the air. Barrett has battled a nagging groin injury, which bothered him Friday, and Reed went down with a high ankle sprain in the second half against Missouri State.

“We need to play some guys a little bit more minutes,” Lebo said. “That was probably my fault because we are asking them to defend as hard as we defend, so we have to be fresher.”