Auburn Tigers in Pole Position Headed into Final Week of Regular Season
Another week, another poll that the AP has the Auburn Tigers sitting on top. The Auburn Tigers played two vital games in the last week. The first one came against the Ole Miss Rebels on Wednesday, Feb. 26. The Tigers annihilated the Rebels 106-76, in Neville Arena with Auburn legend Charles Barkley looking on.
The Tigers then traveled to Rupp Arena for a battle of the Old School vs. the New School as they took on the former No. 17 team, the Kentucky Wildcats. The Wildcats had been a dynasty for the past few decades, but with Auburn on the rise and Kentucky in an off-year due to the departure of former head coach John Calipari, this game was a passing of the torch for the SEC. The game wasn’t close. The Tigers crushed the Wildcats 94-78. With the win, the Tigers clinched a share of the SEC regular-season championship. Later that night, the Tigers clinched the championship outright as the Tennessee Volunteers beat the Alabama Crimson Tide at the buzzer.
With the latest polls and projections put out at the end of February, per Joe Lunardi, the Tigers are still slated to be the No.1 overall seed and No. 1 seed in the South region. If all were to end today, they would face the winner of Southern or American who could play in the round of 68. After that, the Tigers would face off against Illinois or Vanderbilt. Other potential threats to Auburn throughout their region are Clemson, Marquette, Michigan, Iowa State and Kentucky should things end today.
The Tigers have two games left in the regular season before they head to the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. Those games include the No. 22 Texas A&M Aggies and the No. 7 Alabama Crimson Tide. The Aggies are currently on a two-game skid and were dropped 10 spots in the latest AP poll. The Crimson Tide lost to the Volunteers and will have the No. 5 Florida Gators before they face off with the Tigers.
