The 2-4-7: Auburn at Mississippi State

The Tigers’ four straight losses have hurt, but they’ve all been to Quad 1 opponents. Now they play a Mississippi State squad (12-13, 4-8 SEC) that’s lost eight of its last 10 games, not to mention Auburn has leading scorer Keyshawn Hall back in the lineup. The Tigers (14-11, 5-7 SEC) are hanging on to their positioning in the NCAA tournament field, but that could take a major hit Wednesday night in a Quad 2 game.

Here’s the 2-4-7 preview for what could be one of Auburn’s most important remaining games to win, with two matchups to watch, four quotes of note and seven stats to study.

Location: Humphrey Coliseum (Starkville, Miss.)

Tipoff: 8 p.m. CST (ESPN2)

Auburn’s chance to win: 63.8% (ESPN BPI)

Point spread (FanDuel): Auburn -4.5

Series history: Auburn 84-71

Coaching matchup: Steven Pearl (Year 1) 0-0 vs. Chris Jans (Year 4)