While Auburn men’s basketball has played just one true road game this season, few places will test a team more than Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Auburn was competitive in that game, even starting on a 13-2 run, but eventually fell 84-78 to the then ninth-ranked Blue Devils. Despite that loss and the challenges that the “Cameron Crazies” present, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl believes his team might have a tougher road test coming up next when the Tigers travel to Austin for a game against Texas Tuesday night.

“I think this is going to even be more of a road game, because at Duke, their place only holds eight and a half or something like that, and we had at least 1,000 people in the building,” Pearl said when speaking to reporters Monday. “This is gonna be an even harder environment, because I don’t expect to have as many — I don’t expect to have 1,000 Auburn fans down there.”

Texas’ Moody Center has a capacity of around 10,000 for basketball games, more than Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium and Auburn’s Neville Arena, albeit not by much.

The Longhorns are 7-1 at home this season, but haven’t beaten a team ranked higher than No. 158 in KenPom. Texas suffered a 76-65 loss in a Dec. 8 home game against UConn, the highest-rated team Texas has played at home.

“UConn played great that night,” Pearl said. “That had been a big one for them, and for the league, if they could’ve gotten that one.”

Pearl mentioned the fact that Texas is still searching for a marquee win, and this could be an opportunity for the Longhorns to pull it off at home.

“They’re looking for a signature win. They’re looking for one that they can hang their hat on,” Pearl said. “This is that first opportunity for them in the league at home. I would imagine that they would be fired up about the opportunity to play us.”

Texas is coming off a 20-point loss to Texas A&M in its Southeastern Conference opener, one where the Longhorns were outscored 43-23 in the second half. Their No. 43 KenPom ranking also ranks in the bottom half of the SEC, but many would argue that says more about the overall strength and depth of the conference.

While the game may look like a bigger opportunity for Texas on paper, Pearl isn’t taking anything lightly going on the road in conference play for the first time.

“We’ve had a lot of big games, and I think this one absolutely qualifies,” Pearl said. “It qualifies for both teams. This is a Quad 1 opportunity for us. Obviously, Texas is a household name in the world of intercollegiate athletics. Everything they do in Texas is big, and they do it pretty well.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m