Steven Pearl made a firm case on the Auburn Tigers being deserving of an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament following their loss to the No. 25 Tennessee Volunteers on Thursday evening.
Pearl is going through the first season of his head coaching career. He took over the job after his father, Bruce, stepped down from the position after leading the program to the Final Four last season.
Auburn had a difficult campaign as it dealt with many losses against high-quality opponents. After the Tigers lost to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament, Pearl explained why they should still have a bid.
“If we're gonna look at six teams on the bubble right now, with Texas, SMU, VCU, Miami of Ohio, Missouri, and New Mexico. We have more top 25 NET wins than everyone in that group but Missouri. We have more top 50 wins than everyone in that group; we have two top-25 road neutral wins, which is more than everyone else on the bubble. We have more wins over the projected field than anyone else on the bubble,” Pearl said.
“We did the things that were asked of us in scheduling. With 10 new guys, that was probably a little aggressive on our part with nine underclassmen. But our guys have some of the best wins in college basketball. And this team deserves to be in the tournament. It's a team that can win games in the tournament. And I think they've done enough, ultimately, to have their name called on Selection Sunday.”
Steven Pearl makes his case for why Auburn should be in the tournament:
“It’s my job to fight for my team and to be my team’s advocate”pic.twitter.com/m24RdfQRNj
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 12, 2026
What's next for Steven Pearl, Auburn
Steven Pearl can make a case for Auburn getting an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament. However, that becomes difficult when the fact is they lost too many games.
Auburn barely won over half its games, having a 17-16 overall record. This includes a woeful 7-11 SEC record, a display that wouldn't be deserving of a usual at-large bid.
If the Tigers get one, it will require a lot of remaining results to go their way. Auburn awaits its destiny Selection Sunday on March 15.
