We are 10 games into the young Steven Pearl era at Auburn, with the No. 21-ranked Tigers having lost a trio of games during that stretch.
One came by a single point – after Auburn missed 12 free throws despite attempting a whopping 21 more than its opponent.
That opponent was Houston, which ranked No. 1 at the time of the 73-72 loss in the Magic City. It was Pearl’s first matchup against a Hall of Fame-caliber coach, Kelvin Sampson, who boasts more than 800 career wins.
It was also Auburn’s first real test of the season and Pearl’s most significant challenge to date – unless you want to factor in a narrow overtime escape against Bethune-Cookman in the season-opener.
Sure, Auburn shot itself in the foot – a familiar trend in Auburn athletics – but it showed real promise. And Pearl’s theatrics in the closing seconds certainly showed he is passionate and committed to maintaining the standard his father, Bruce Pearl, established – one that included two trips to the Final Four in the last six seasons, with the most recent coming just last season.
Photo by Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
A week later, Auburn made the trek to Las Vegas to play in the second annual Players Era Festival. It opened with an 84-73 triumph over Oregon – which looked like a good win at the time, and could still prove meaningful down the stretch. The following day, however, the Tigers suffered a disastrous 30-point loss to then-No. 7 Michigan, marking their worst loss since a 32-point thumping at the hands of Kentucky in 2023.
Shockingly, that 30-point defeat was the closest margin of victory Michigan allowed during its three-game stretch in Vegas.
Auburn responded with an 85-74 bounce-back win over then-No. 14 St. John’s and Rick Pitino – another Hall of Fame coach.
Its third loss of the season came against then-No. 2 Arizona in McKale Center in Tucson – Auburn’s first true road game of the season. Arizona trounced the Tigers 97-68 to stay unbeaten.
All three of the Tigers’ losses came to teams that were ranked No. 1 or now sit at No. 1 and No. 2 in the latest AP Poll – Arizona at No. 1 with Michigan holding down the No. 2 spot.
The Tigers own the fifth-toughest remaining strength of schedule, according to ESPN. KenPom shows that Auburn has faced, or will face, four of the top 10 offenses in the country, and seven of the top 15 to date.
Facing a daunting non-conference schedule is nothing new for Auburn on the hardwood. Last season, in Bruce’s final year on the Plains, the Tigers navigated a brutal non-conference slate en route to the program’s first-ever No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.
“He made this schedule thinking he was going to be the one who was going to have to suffer through it, so I can’t completely blame him,” Steven jokingly said of his father prior to Auburn’s matchup against Arizona.
Auburn will have an opportunity to bounce back with a win against Chattanooga this Saturday in Atlanta. And next up on the docket is another heavyweight battle, this time against No. 6 Purdue, which tops KenPom’s offensive efficiency rankings and marks the Tigers’ second-to-last non-conference test of the regular season.
Photo by Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
But, Auburn fans, there’s still no reason to panic.
The Tigers, having to overcome the loss of Bruce, boast just one scholarship player from last season’s Final Four squad: Tahaad Pettiford. Simply put, the adjustment period was inevitable, no matter who was manning the sidelines.
Auburn’s 2019 squad, which famously fell a missed double-dribble call short of a national championship game, lost seven conference games and finished the regular season with a 30-10 overall record.
As a No. 5-seed in the SEC tournament, Auburn ripped off five wins to take home the conference crown before tallying four wins in the NCAA Tournament as a 5-seed, knocking off bluebloods such as Kansas, North Carolina, and Kentucky along the way.
There’s much to improve on for Auburn before conference play begins after the new year. It desperately needs to shore up its interior defense – especially after giving up 60 points down low to Arizona. It must find more consistency from Pettiford, who has not topped 13 points inside Neville Arena this season.
But, even amid the growing pains, there have been many positives.
Photo by Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
Auburn boasts the third-highest scorer in the SEC, with Keyshawn Hall putting up 20.8 points per game. Freshman sensation Sebastian Williams-Adams is producing. And the Tigers have posted 859 points on the season, seventh-most through the first 10 games in program history.
“While the SEC is really good, it’s probably not as good as it was last year,” Steven said. “But if you look at the teams we’re going to play in nonconference, we’re not going to see anyone that’s any better (in the SEC) than the teams we will have faced up to this point. It’s a great litmus test for our guys, and it helps them prepare and get ready for what we’re going to see every single night in conference play.”
The season is not defined by three losses to potential national championship contenders in November and December.
Auburn fans, let things unfold.
Steven is confident that he can sustain the championship standard his father built on the Plains. TG
