Auburn’s second win of the season did more than pad the record. It nudged the Tigers up in KenPom’s latest update, and the numbers paint a pretty clear picture of where this team stands right now.
The Tigers rolled past Appalachian State 75-53 on Monday in Neville Arena, and the performance was spread around. All 10 Auburn players who saw the floor scored at least two points, with Tahaad Pettiford leading the way with 26.
He was the only Tiger to hit double figures, though Kolby King and Adam Olsen each finished with nine. Narcisse Ngoy, George Kimble and Owen Freeman added six apiece.
Auburn also did the job on the other end. Appalachian State was held to 53 points on 32% shooting, and while Eren Banks and Jaylen Colon each reached double figures, the Mountaineers didn’t get much from the bench. Eight reserve players combined for just 13 points.
That result pushed Auburn up two spots to No. 20 overall in KenPom’s Tuesday update. The Tigers are one of five SEC teams in the top 20.
The offense is still the strongest part of the profile. Auburn sits at No. 17 in offensive efficiency with a 119.3 rating, which means KenPom projects the Tigers to score 119.3 points per 100 possessions. That puts Auburn one spot ahead of Arizona in that category entering Tuesday’s action.
Defensively, Auburn checks in at No. 31 with a 96.2 efficiency rating. That leaves the Tigers just outside the top 30, but still ahead of several big-name programs, including Alabama, Purdue and North Carolina.
The pace number is more modest. Auburn ranks No. 198 in tempo, with KenPom projecting 70.7 offensive possessions per game.
Against Appalachian State, the Tigers played at a slower clip, creating 60 possessions and scoring on 34 of them. That wasn’t much of a surprise considering Appalachian State is the slowest team in college basketball, according to KenPom, at an estimated 65.7 possessions per game.
Friday should look very different, though, with Arizona coming in at No. 25 in tempo.
The schedule rating is still light for now. Auburn is No. 285 in strength of schedule, a reflection of blowout wins over Southeastern Louisiana and Appalachian State.
But that number is about to get tested. The Tigers are set for guaranteed games against Arizona and West Virginia, both top-35 teams in KenPom, and could also see Kansas, UNLV, Houston, Rutgers, Notre Dame and Florida in next week’s Players Era 8 Festival in Las Vegas.
So far, Auburn’s opponents have posted a 99.0 offensive efficiency rating and a 110.3 defensive efficiency rating.
The next big checkpoint comes Friday, when Auburn hosts No. 11 Arizona in Neville Arena.
The Wildcats are 1-1 after losing to No. 15 UCLA and beating Cal Poly.
Arizona will play Northern Arizona on Tuesday before heading to the Plains.
KenPom has Arizona at No. 13 overall, No. 18 in offensive efficiency at 119.3, No. 16 in defensive efficiency at 93.5, No. 25 in tempo at 74.0 and No. 79 in strength of schedule. The projection gives Auburn an 80-79 edge and a 56% chance to win.
In Other News...
Auburn Just Landed A Massive Piece For Its Future Up Front
Auburn added another promising building block for the future up front with the commitment of four-star offensive lineman Jatori Williams, a 2027 prospect whose decision gives the Tigers an early foothold in a class that already has some real traction. Williams had been pledged to Miami before shifting his attention to Auburn, and his move underscores how much the Tigers have leaned on relationship-building as they try to stack talent along the line of scrimmage.
For Auburn, the appeal goes beyond rankings. Williams pointed to his bond with the coaching staff and the chance to stay close to his hometown as major factors in his choice, and those are the kinds of details that can matter just as much as a polished pitch on signing day. He now stands as the third-highest-rated commit in Auburns 2027 class and one of the top offensive line prospects in the country, a strong early marker for a program trying to secure its future in the trenches. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Still Has One Big Question Before Arizona Showdown
Auburn took care of business against Appalachian State, rolling to a 75-53 win behind Tahaad Pettifords 26 points and keeping control for most of the afternoon. The victory also extended the Tigers non-conference home winning streak to 69 games, another reminder that Neville Arena has remained a difficult place for visiting teams to survive.
Now the schedule tightens quickly with No. 13 Arizona next on the slate, and that matchup will ask a different set of questions than the Mountaineers did. Auburn has shown it can handle business at home, but the Wildcats bring the kind of challenge that can expose what still needs sorting out before the Tigers get deeper into the season. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns Latest Commitment Signals A Bigger Fix Up Front
Auburns offensive line issues have been impossible to ignore this season, with the struggles showing up both in the rushing game and in the amount of protection the quarterback has gotten. So when Alex Golesh and his staff started building the 2027 class, the emphasis up front made sense, and the Tigers have already added five new offensive linemen as part of that effort.
The latest piece of that approach is four-star interior lineman Jatori Williams, a commitment that fits the broader push to stabilize the trenches for future seasons. Auburn has also brought in running backs Myson Johnson-Cook and Khamoni Williams, but the line remains the clearest priority, and the staffs early work suggests it knows the fix has to start there. [Read more 🡒]