Vanderbilt and Auburn meet on Tuesday, each coming off tight losses.
The Tigers fell to Alabama, 96-92, in the latest edition of the Iron Bowl of Basketball. The Commodores, meanwhile, suffered an upset loss to Oklahoma, falling 92-91 to a Sooners team that had lost its last nine games.
Needless to say, both teams will be looking to shake off some tough results as the regular season starts to wind down. According to ESPN Analytics, Auburn projects slightly to do just that. The Tigers are being given a 56.2% chance to beat the Commodores at home.
Joe Lunardi’s bracketology had Vandy and Auburn both in good shape for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Vanderbilt was slotted as a 4 seed in the South Region, although that will take a hit after losing to Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Auburn is an 8 seed in the Midwest Region as it is trying to bounce back from back-to-back losses.
The Commodores are looking to remain in the hunt for a regular-season SEC championship. But they have a shrinking margin for error. They are currently in fifth place and just two games behind Florida, but will need to leapfrog Kentucky, Arkansas, and Texas A&M. The Wildcats and Aggies are on Vandy’s upcoming schedule.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
