ESPN’s Joe Lunardi weighs in on Auburn’s bubble status after Ole Miss loss
By David Wasson
Published:
The Auburn Tigers basketball team has lost seven of its last eight games to fall into the bottom half of the Southeastern Conference standings – including a disappointing 85-79 home loss to Ole Miss on Saturday night.
Despite Auburn’s 15-14 overall record and 6-10 SEC slate, however, ESPN Bracketology expert Joe Lunardi still has the Tigers making the 2026 NCAA Tournament – listing Steven Pearl’s team as one of his Last Four In teams in the latest update.
Auburn joins Santa Clara, Indiana and New Mexico on Lunardi’s Last Four In list. Lunardi says the SEC will earn 11 bids in the 68-team field, with Florida moving up to the No. 2 seed line after the Gators’ blowout win against Arkansas.
Ole Miss snapped a 10-game losing streak with Saturday night’s win on the Plains. Patton Pinkins scored a career-high 26 points for the Rebels (12-17, 4-12) and AJ Storr also scored 26 points.
Auburn got 24 points from Tahaad Pettiford and 21 points from Keyshawn Hall, but fell to 0-13 this season when trailing in a game with five minutes remaining.
The Tigers have two more chances in the regular season to shore up their NCAA Tournament hopes, starting Tuesday at home against LSU (10 p.m. ET, SEC Network) and then Saturday at No. 17 Alabama (8:30 pm ET, ESPN).
Over at prediction market Kalshi, Auburn’s chances to make the Big Dance aren’t looking as good. We’ll see how things play out over the next couple of weeks.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
