Auburn #1 :First Time Ever

[AuburnNTexas 7,140]

We have had a target on our back for a while as we keep moving up in the polls. Everybody gets fired up when they play us now and bring their best game. Our team talent, depth, and unity has helped us to this point but it will just get tougher as each team wants to beat Number 1.  This is great news because the tougher teams play us and force us to play better the more we will be battle hardened and ready for the SEC tournament and more importantly for the Big dance.

We need to keep playing tough D improve from game to game and be ready for the big dance. I really want to see how we play Florida and their Center. If Kessler is as good as he was against the KY center and refs don't try and take him out we should see a much better team against Florida then the game where we beat them at home.

[Tigerpro2a 5,650]

[wareagleguy 1,393]

Great job by Pearl and his staff. He has pulled off an amazing ascent from where we were when he arrived. Great team that plays hard and has fun! They say staying on top is harder than getting there, but I think this team has a real chance to win it all. WDE!

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

It's awesome seeing the former players so excited as well! They played a huge role in this, and we wouldn't be where we are without them! Glad they are getting to enjoy this moment too

[AUGnome 91]

Congrats to this team. They sure are fun to watch!

 

[toddc 13,194]

SIAP

[JDUBB4AU 5,112]

25 minutes ago, toddc said:

SIAP

Awesome. Wow 

[lutzcammed 469]

I have been searching to find how the coaches voted but I cannot find it.  is it available to the public?

[BigBlueWDE 1,136]

46 minutes ago, lutzcammed said:

I have been searching to find how the coaches voted but I cannot find it.  is it available to the public?

I think they keep it anonymous. Not sure if they reveal the names after the final poll or not

[NoALtiger 3,850]

8 hours ago, tgrogan21 said:

Newell is a Kenpom copy and paster we all knew he would have us at 5.

BUT AUBURN BASKETBALL IS #1!!!!

EVERYONE GET IN HERE!!!!

So the question is why is Kenpom so off then. 

[NoALtiger 3,850]

2 hours ago, Maverick.AU said:

It's awesome seeing the former players so excited as well! They played a huge role in this, and we wouldn't be where we are without them! Glad they are getting to enjoy this moment too

Who’s saying what? I don’t do any social media and out of the loop on, well basically everything.  

[PigskinPat 2,579]

This is an incredible accomplishment in Auburn basketball. Now that we’ve proven it can be done, it won’t be the last time we’re ranked #1.

Edited January 25, 2022 by PigskinPat

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

 

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

3 minutes ago, NoALtiger said:

Who’s saying what? I don’t do any social media and out of the loop on, well basically everything.  

Guys like Jared, horace, laron smith, etc 

[tgrogan21 6,198]

16 minutes ago, NoALtiger said:

Who’s saying what? I don’t do any social media and out of the loop on, well basically everything.  

They are all congratulating the team on being #1. Fans are in turn giving them their flowers for being the start of this incredible run. Give me some time and I'll edit this post with some tweets.

 

 

 

 

 

Edit: finally got the twitter links in. It has been incredibly difficult lately to edit links in.

Edited January 25, 2022 by tgrogan21

[tgrogan21 6,198]

25 minutes ago, NoALtiger said:

So the question is why is Kenpom so off then. 

Just weird metrics. We're 5-7 in every computer ranking except I think Massey Composite which has us at 4. We're beating teams and covering the spread but other teams are beating teams by more than we are.

[Pedaler 1,001]

For this team, being ranked #1, even if in January, is huge! Recruits are starting to see us at the top of the polls, and hopefully on a regular basis. The Final Four appearance was just a start, not a flash in the pan. This is exactly how Gonzaga pulled itself up from a Cinderella to a perennial.

[WVR 818]

SIAP,  but I love this interview. "We're a Football School, but we're also a Everything School".

 

 

[TeamZero77 1,784]

Bruce Pearl just became the first coach in SEC history to get 2 SEC schools to the #1 ranking in the AP poll. February 2008, Tennessee was ranked #2 and played the #1 Memphis Tigers led by Derrike Rose and coached by John Calipari. Tennessee won that game and jumped to #1 in the AP poll. They would lose their very next game at Vanderbilt, who was also ranked. That would drop Tennessee from the top spot. 

Kinda funny how Bruce's teams had to beat a John Calipari led team both times to vault to #1. This is only the beginning in my opinion. WDE

Edited January 25, 2022 by TeamZero77

[TeamZero77 1,784]

Just a look at the year by year buildup to this point. 

2014)  15-20 overall....4-14 in SEC

2015)  11-20 overall.....5-13 SEC

2016)  18-14 overall.....7-11 SEC

2017)  26-8 overall....13-5 SEC Champs

2018)  30-10 overall...11-7 SEC Tourney Champs.....Final 4 

2019)  25-6 overall.....12-6 SEC 2nd place regular season....No tourneys due 2 Covid

2020) 13-14 overall.....7-11 SEC 

2021) 18-1 overall currently.....7-0 SEC AP poll #1 first time in school history

To think back to that first season in 2014 and how KT Harrell hit a long 3 to send us to OT against LSU where we would win and advance to the semi finals of the SEC Tourney. Thinking back to 2017 when we finally cracked the AP top 25 and went onto the SEC regular season title and our first March Madness bid in 15 years. Then 2018 we win the SEC Tournament and knock off Kansas, UNC and Kentucky all in a row to advance to our first Final 4 ever. Chuma Okeke gets drafted in the lottery. 2019 we start out 14-0 and get up to #4 AP poll. We finish 2nd in the regular season SEC standings. This team was even better than 2018 team but no tourneys due to Covid. Issac Okoro gets drafted in the 1st round. In 2020 it was just a rollercoaster because Sharife Cooper had to sit the first half of the year and we could never get flowing as Powell went down with a severe concussion. We finish 1 game under .500 and Sharife Cooper is drafted to the Atl. Hawks. Now its 2021/22 and we open up at #22 in the AP. We have Jabari Smith who could be the #1 pick. Our UNC transfer Walker Kessler is an absolute machine, Allen Flanigan is back from an achilles and was voted All SEC 1st team, Wendell Green is absolutely amazing and we have arguably the deepest roster in the country. We just knocked off Alabama on the road, beat an undefeated LSU and smacked Kentucky to get us to our first AP poll #1 ranking EVER!!!! We have 3 players in our starting 5 that will be drafted this year and everybody in America knows about Auburn basketball again!!!! This is for Bruce Pearl and every single player that has ever put on that Auburn uniform. WAR DAMN EAGLE

[Viper 3,132]

[Viper 3,132]

10 hours ago, TeamZero77 said:

2019 we start out 14-0 and get up to #4 AP poll. We finish 2nd in the regular season SEC standings. This team was even better than 2018 team but no tourneys due to Covid.

Agreed w everything you said, but disagreed here. The 18-19 team had magic and would have won both Final Four games by 6-12 points with Okeke. 

[zeroforwinger 443]

15 hours ago, NoALtiger said:

So the question is why is Kenpom so off then. 

It’s all based on offensive/defensive efficiency. I wonder if taking your foot off the gas in some games causes the efficiency levels to drop. I don’t know enough about their calculations to say, just an initial thought. 

[zeroforwinger 443]

3 minutes ago, Viper said:

Agreed w everything you said, but disagreed here. The 18-19 team had magic and would have won both Final Four games by 6-12 points with Okeke. 

Virginia knows who really won that game. 

[Viper 3,132]

12 minutes ago, zeroforwinger said:

Virginia knows who really won that game. 

Even after the missed double dribble, I wish Brown would have let their guard shoot the 3 instead of fouling him. We get the rebound and it’s over.