If Auburn wants to play in the NCAA Tournament, the Tigers have some work to do during the rest of SEC play.
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology, Steven Pearl’s team is sitting at an eight seed for the 2026 NCAA Tournament, and that was before Tuesday evening’s controversial loss to Texas A&M in Neville Arena.
After a tough non-conference schedule that saw the Tigers face four teams in the top 10, Pearl’s squad came out with just one win over a ranked team, which came against then-No. 14 St. John’s in the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas.
Blowout losses to Michigan, Arizona and Purdue won’t impress the tournament committee much, but a one-point loss to then-No. 1 Houston might attract some votes in favor of the Tigers. Auburn also put up quality wins over NC State and Oregon in non-conference play.
Tigers need a win in SEC play badly
Which brings us to the start of SEC play, where the Tigers now sit 0-2, with a visit from No. 15 Arkansas set for Saturday. A Kevin Overton shot at the buzzer sent Auburn’s game at Georgia to overtime, but the Bulldogs were able to outscore the Tigers 12-8 in the 104-100 win.
On Tuesday night in Neville Arena, it seemed that KeShawn Murphy had played the role of hero as he nailed a 35-foot shot at the buzzer to give Auburn a 91-90 victory over the Aggies. After review, however, the SEC officials determined that the ball had not left Murphy's hand when the clock hit zero. The referees were escorted off the court as Auburn fans yelled at them and threw objects in anger.
A win against the Razorbacks would soothe a lot of this, but the Tigers must not fall behind the eight ball when it comes to working themselves into the tournament. That would be a bad way for Pearl to begin his head coaching career, no matter how close they might come.