For the first time since 2021, Auburn won’t be participating in the NCAA Tournament after a disappointing season in which the Tigers went 17-16, including 7-11 in SEC play, in Steven Pearl’s first season as head coach on the Plains.
Instead of being upset and calling it a season, the Tigers decided to accept a bid to the NIT, in which they will host South Alabama on Tuesday night in Neville Arena as a No. 1 seed.
While some schools often opt out of the NIT after seeing their bubble burst on Selection Sunday, Pearl had a different attitude.
Steven Pearl wants to see his team continue to compete
“I'm here to coach basketball,” the coach said. “The guys on my roster are here to play basketball, and we're all here to compete. And I'm not going to duck away from an opportunity to go out there and prepare and compete and play basketball because that's what we're here to do. I'm not going to take my ball and go home because we didn't make the tournament.”
It is a great opportunity for the Tigers to play in front of a home crowd at least once more, while it might also give Pearl time to evaluate who he wants to bring back next season, if he hasn’t already. There was some dysfunction within this year’s squad at times, and it showed on the court with disappointing losses that cost the Tigers a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
But, as Pearl points out, it is also an opportunity to get some national viewership on nights when the NCAA Tournament isn’t being played.
“Most of our games will probably be on ESPN,” he said. “And there's a lot of people in college basketball that would love to be able to do that.”
Auburn and South Alabama tip off at 9 p.m. CT on Tuesday on ESPN2.