KeKe Carrier has a tough time pulling off the whole “inconspicuous” thing.

If you can’t spot her lined up during today’s player introductions towering over her teammates, or in the post, likely a head taller than the opponent who drew the short straw and was forced to guard Auburn’s menacing junior center, then a trip to the optometrist may be in your future.

In fact, if you can’t even see that megawatt smile of hers that she tends to flash when she’s on the bench, you probably shouldn’t be allowed to drive home.

Yes, Carrier, at 6-foot-7, is bigger than most, if not all, of what Auburn’s opponents have to offer down in the post. And yes, when Carrier is keeping up with her speedy teammates and screaming for the ball an eyelash-distance from the hoop, the result is usually 2 easy points for Auburn.

But here’s the puzzling part. It hasn’t happened every time Auburn has taken the court with Carrier on the bench. On some occasions, it’s seemed that Carrier doesn’t want the ball.

Coach Nell Fortner knows what’s going on during such times. Carrier’s just playing tough defense — on herself.

“KeKe has all the potential in the world because there’s nobody else like her,” Fortner said. “But it comes down to how much does KeKe want to be the player that has all that potential.”

That player has certainly shown up over the past three games, as Carrier has notched 14, 11 and 14 points, respectively, on 15-of-18 shooting.

Auburn’s made it no secret that it wants to quicken the pace of every game it plays this season, and Carrier is just fine with that. She’s noticeably slimmed down from last year, when she redshirted, and she finishes out every conditioning drill in practice as fast as she can, no matter how long it takes.

But in order to find consistent success, Carrier said she figured at the onset of Auburn’s Christmas break that she had to slow the game down.

“I was trying to be faster than I should have been,” Carrier said. “When I go into the game, it’s more about my mindset. I need to have a calm mindset and be focused before the game and during the game.”

But there’s been more to Carrier’s resurgence. She’s screaming now.

“She’s gotten hungry,” Fortner said, “and that’s been the difference.”

Though Auburn boasts one of the most formidable starting 5’s in the SEC, Carrier provides one of the Tigers’ few potent threats off the bench. When she’s in and ready to play, Carrier has the ability to completely change the game and tweaks Auburn’s identity just a bit, Fortner said.

A speedy, Red Bull-injected offense morphs into a still-swift attack with a dominant, non-defendable presence just inches from the hoop.

“There’s not a good way to defend KeKe,” Fortner said. “She’s really the only person that can stop KeKe.

“When she is focused on that and wanting that, she can pretty much do what she wants to do.”

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