Mar 11, 2022; Tampa, FL, USA; Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl reacts against the Texas A&M Aggies during the second half at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Auburn moved up an impressive 7 spots in the latest NET rankings, which were updated on Thursday.
The Tigers are now ranked No. 21 nationally, per the metric. They crushed LSU 67-49 in Baton Rouge on Wednesday night.
Auburn is the third highest-ranked SEC team in the NET so far this season. Tennessee and Alabama are at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively. The next highest-ranked SEC program is Arkansas at No. 27.
Auburn has won 4 straight contests and 6 of its last 7. Its only loss during that span came against Georgia on the road back on Jan. 4. That’s also the Tigers’ lone SEC defeat so far this season.
So far this season, Auburn has been led by Wendell Green, Johni Broome and Jaylin Williams. All 3 of those players are scoring in double figures this season. Green leads the team in assists with 3.8 per contest while Broome paces everyone with 8.5 rebounds per game. Williams is second on the team in both categories.
Auburn is a big favorite to extend its winning streak to 5 games this weekend. The Tigers will go on the road to face South Carolina. The Gamecocks are 1-4 in the SEC this season.
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So what is the talk about the new 5 star forward? Can he just not score? Can"t remember his name at the moment.
Traore I believe or something close to that.
Auburn's freshmen have contributed very little thus far this season. That said, Im ecstatic about our season at this juncture, especially since I thought Yohan would be one of our top 3 scorers and rebounders. I haven't given up on any of the freshmen and expect them to improve either later in the season or next year.
Not sure why you're ecstatic. This team has underperformed expectations to this point.
"This team has underperformed expectations to this point."
Yeah, they're so bad they're 15-3 and 5-1 in the SEC.
Im ecstatic about our season because our freshmen have underperformed and I thought 2 of them would be key contributors. When you lose 2 1st round draft picks, you are absurd to think 15 and 3 isn't good at this juncture. Yes, they have more difficult games down the road which is why I said at this juncture.
It's pretty clear that the SEC is very mediocre this year, and Auburn is fighting and clawing just to beat the mostly lower-half teams it's played so far (combined conference record of the five SEC teams Auburn has beaten so far is 5-23). In a couple of weeks, there's going to be a reality check. Pearl made an error when he trusted that his guards would develop in the offseason and so didn't recruit replacements from the portal. Green scores points, but he utterly fails at the primary functions of his position: leading the team, making good passes, getting the ball in the hands of playmakers. He is always trying to make his own shot first, and only passing as a last resort. Johnson is still as childish, selfish, and out-of-control as last season, but less productive. And yeah, this year's freshmen are busts. Donaldson may develop into a serviceable player eventually, but Traore looks like Danjel Purifoy 2.0: A highly-rated recruit who will, at best, develop into a sometimes contributor (if he doesn't transfer, which he probably will). Given the intense competition Pearl is facing from Bama, Arkansas, etc., he needs to reassess his recruiting strategy. Start by getting some guys who can actually shoot the ball.
Agree with this comment Jack. Thanks for providing more context. I love KDs energy but he has definitely regressed.