Auburn Drop in AP Poll After Two Consecutive Losses
The Auburn Tigers, after eight consecutive weeks of being on top of the college basketball world, have fallen to No. 3 after two consecutive losses. They lost, 83-72, to No. 22 Texas A&M on Tuesday and then lost in overtime by just two points to No. 7 Alabama on senior night. Now the Aggies sit at 14th while the Crimson Tide sit at fifth.
Both the Crimson Tide and the Aggies had been on two-game losing streaks before upsetting the Tigers. This is the first time this season that the Tigers have lost back-to-back games. The only other losses they have had come from within the current top-5 teams in the new No. 1 Duke Blue Devils and the new No. 4 Florida Gators. The Crimson Tide joined the Gators as the only two teams to beat the Tigers in Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala.
Despite the losses, the Tigers are still in prime position for both the SEC Tournament and NCAA Tournament. They still maintain the No. 1 seed for the SEC Tournament and will receive a double alongside Alabama, Florida and the No. 8 Tennessee Volunteers. As the Tigers fall to third in the nation, winning the SEC might be a priority in order to get back in the good graces of the voters.
The Tigers’ first real challenge will be against either the Volunteers or the Aggies in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament. If the Tigers are able to put a dominating performance against either team, the nation will take notice. The Aggies are a three-seed for the NCAA Tournament while the Volunteers are a two-seed. Once they get past that, it is likely that the Tigers will face the Crimson Tide or Gators again in the championship game. If they want to reassert their dominance, they will need to win that game too.
For now, the Tigers will have to await their opponent in the quarterfinals, whichever team that may be.
