12-1. 11-2. 12-0. 6-2. 11-1. 10-2. No, those are not the records of Auburn football over the last six years, though one can hope those are the records over the next six years. Those are the non-conference records of Bruce Pearl’s Auburn basketball team starting with the 2017-18 season in which Auburn made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in fifteen years.
It is no secret that Auburn basketball has gone from bad to good to great under Pearl. Just 10 years ago, Jeff Lebo was the coach of the Tigers, and an NCAA tournament appearance was the last consideration for the good guys. That quickly changed with the hire of Bruce Pearl.
Bruce Pearl and the now three athletic directors he has worked for at Auburn University have not shied away from difficult non-conference schedules ever since Pearl took the job and replaced Tony Barbee. They have all understood that even if the record isn’t flawless going into the rigors of SEC play, the team would be battle tested and ready. This year is no different.
The Tigers have played some tough teams, including road trips to USC and Washington. They’ve also played Memphis at State Farm Arena in front of a national audience. They’ve faced off against multiple 2022 NCAA Tournament participants, those being Texas Southern, Memphis, and Colgate. The schedule is not inherently easy by any means.
What has separated Auburn in previous years was the high-end talent that would help them win games even when the team as a whole had not figured themselves out. Jabari Smith being Jabari Smith, Sharife Cooper going nuts in the small number of games he was able to play, Samir Doughty proving he could be a lead guard, and Jared Harper and Bryce Brown simply being the best backcourt in Auburn history.
This year, that top-end talent is still being found. Is it Johni Broome, the physical transfer from Morehead State? Yohan Traore, the incredibly gifted true freshman who has struggled but has all the tools? Or even Chance Westry, who at times is the Tigers’ best offensive player regardless of position? All of these things are being sorted out still.