Auburn Basketball: A Tentative Start for Lebo and His Tigers

As the Auburn Tigers break for the finals, they are the subject of many questions.

First the areas for improvement.

1. Bad losses

Auburn has lost four games this season; two of them were just plain bad.

The eleven point loss to Missouri State was a result of poor shooting from others beside Lucas Hargrove and DeWayne Reed.

Auburn's loss to Troy was a result of poor shooting and poor defense on the Tigers' part, allowing the Trojans to penetrate as they pleased. This carried over into the Virginia game, although the Tigers did manage to come out with a win. 

2.  Bad Lane Defense

The last few games, the defense has not been up to the task to stop opponents from penetrating the lane and scoring easy baskets.

This will have to be rectified with Brendon Knox standing tall in the lane as opponents charge into the paint. 

3. Shot Selection

The shot selection has also been an issue. The Tigers are a guard shooting team, which means shot selection is key. In three of their four losses, Auburn shot under 40 percent from the floor and under 30 percent. 

Onto some good notes:

1.  Return of Tay Waller

Regardless on how it happened, having Waller back in the lineup will cause other defenses to guard the Tiger attack differently. Once Waller shakes off the rust, he'll be a scoring machine for the Tigers.

2. Auburn has played it close

Auburn has shown they can hang around and win ballgames in the clutch. It will be interesting to see how they ramp up play as conference season approaches.

3. Auburn has crashed the boards

Auburn has kept up with opponents on the boards unlike previous seasons. The Tigers have had better opportunities to win ballgames this year.

What remains to be seen is how the Tigers will react as conference season approaches.  Their next opponent, Florida State, is another quality team from the ACC. A win over the Seminoles will help Auburn move in the right direction.