No.7 Auburn (19-1) at Georgia (12-8)                1:00 pm EST
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ATHENS, Georgia (Ticker) -- Chris Porter sits out the third
and final game of his suspension as seventh-ranked Auburn looks
to match the best start in school history when it visits
Georgia. 

A victory tonight will give Auburn the second 20-1 start in
school history, matching the 1927-28 squad. The Tigers are also
looking to reach 20 wins for only the sixth time in the 92-year
history of the program.   The school record for victories in a
season is 22, set in 1984-85 and 1985-86. 

Porter, who averages 16.7 points at 8.8 rebounds, was suspended
for three games by coach Cliff Ellis on January 22 for an
unspecified violation of team rules. But the Tigers (19-1, 7-1
SEC West) have overcome his absence to post a pair double-digit
wins. 

Auburn has a 2 1/2-game lead over second-place Arkansas in the
SEC West and is off to its best start in the conference since
the 1958-59 team won its first eight games. The Tigers are 3-1
on the road in conference play, with the loss coming at
then-No.7 Kentucky on January 20. 

Sophomore guard Scott Pohlman also contributes in double figures
for the Tigers (11.8 ppg), who are second in the conference in
scoring offense at 81.1 points per game.  Auburn is the top
defensive team in the SEC, allowing a league-low 58.7 points. 

Georgia (12-8, 3-5 SEC East) has dropped four straight and five
of its last six and is coming off a heartbreaking 91-83 overtime
loss against sixth-ranked Kentucky on Wednesday. 

Jumaine Jones scored a career-high 34 points in Wednesday's loss
but it was not enough as the Bulldogs fell to 0-3 against ranked
opponents this season. They also lost at Arkansas and North
Carolina by a combined 10 points. 

Jones leads the conference in scoring at 20.2 points per game.
Da Layne (11.1 ppg) and Michael Chadwick (10.6 ppg) also
contribute to the Georgia offense, which ranks eighth in the
conference (73.6 ppg).  The Bulldogs allow 70.0 points per game,
second worst in the conference ahead of Vanderbilt. 

The all-time series is tied at 80 wins apiece, although Georgia
has won four of the last five meetings between the teams.