Auburn’s basketball reset is already drawing a little more optimism on the national bracket radar.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has the Tigers projected back into the NCAA Tournament, slotting them as a nine seed in a first-round matchup with eighth-seeded Ohio State. In that forecast, Auburn would land in Charlotte, where Duke, Florida, Marquette, Indiana, the winner of ETSU and Merrimack, and the winner of American and Vermont would also be placed.
That’s a notable turn after a rough opening to Steven Pearl’s run as head coach, when Auburn went from a Final Four trip to an NIT Championship in back-to-back seasons. The roster, though, has been turned over almost completely in response.
Several familiar names are gone. Keyshawn Hall and KeShawn Murphy, two of the Tigers’ key starters, graduated. Sebastian Williams-Adams, Elyjah Freeman, Filip Jović and Kaden Magwood all entered the portal.
Auburn didn’t sit still. The Tigers went to work in both the transfer market and the recruiting trail, piecing together a new group that includes French 7-footer Narcisse Ngoy, who was recently approved for two years of eligibility by the NCAA.
Lithuanian guard Mantas Rubštavičius is the other major overseas addition, though he still hasn’t been cleared to play. Even so, he has taken part in the Tigers’ overseas scrimmages and Pro Day.
The Tigers also added some more familiar portal help. Vanderbilt transfer George Kimble is expected to handle some point guard minutes behind Tahaad Pettiford, while South Alabama transfer Adam Olsen is expected to factor at small forward or power forward. Santa Clara transfer Bukky Oboye brings even more size at 7-foot-1 and profiles as a complementary frontcourt piece alongside Ngoy.
There are still a couple of important holdovers from last season. Pettiford, the lone starter back from Auburn’s 2024 Final Four team, is entering his junior year of eligibility and has one year left unless he chooses to pursue the NBA. Kevin Overton, the NIT Most Outstanding Player, is also back for his final season, and he’s made it clear he expects Auburn to take a much bigger step this year.
With so much turnover for a second straight offseason, the burden now falls on Steven Pearl and his staff to make sure this version of Auburn looks a lot more like a tournament team than the one that finished last season.
In Other News...
Auburn's Offensive Line Fix Hinges On A Reality Fans Hate
Auburns offensive line has been one of those problems that has lingered through multiple coaching staffs, and it is still shaping the conversation around Alex Goleshs first steps with the program. His plan leans heavily on a reality fans often dislike hearing: the quickest fix is not always the best one. Instead of trying to patch the unit together year by year, Golesh is focusing on developing young linemen already in the building, including Kenneth McManus and Wilson Zierer, while also making high school recruiting the backbone of the rebuild.
That approach stands in contrast to the more transfer-heavy stopgap methods Auburn has leaned on before, and it asks for patience at a position group where patience is usually in short supply. The upside is obvious if the development takes hold, because a stable offensive line can change everything for a program trying to reset itself. The downside is just as clear, since the current performance issues are not going away overnight, and the Tigers are still waiting to see whether this longer-term strategy can turn into real protection and consistent push up front. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn's Rebuild Suddenly Feels Tied To What These Commits Become
Auburns rebuilding year has already taken on a longer horizon under Alex Golesh, and the bye week only reinforced that shift. At 3-2 through five games, the Tigers are trying to build this thing the slower way, with more emphasis on high school recruiting than a heavy transfer-portal fix. The coaching staff used the open date to get on the road and into stands around the region, and Golesh made his own rounds while Auburns 2027 class kept climbing into the top 15 nationally.
That is where the story starts to feel more important than a typical midseason recruiting update. Auburn already has 25 commitments in that class, and several of those pledges are putting together strong high school seasons that give the staff plenty to point to as they sell the future. The next step is still months away, but for a program in the middle of a rebuild, the real question is whether those commits keep developing into the kind of core that can make this approach work. [Read more 🡒]
Kirby Smart Is Already Framing Auburn As Georgias Next SEC Test
Georgias win over Alabama kept the Bulldogs unbeaten in SEC play, but Kirby Smart was quick to remind anyone listening that the league schedule only gets harder from here. After a tight 20-17 finish against the Crimson Tide, Smart leaned into the familiar message about staying locked in week to week, a warning that matters just as much for the teams chasing Georgia as it does for the team trying to protect its place.
Auburn is next on the slate, with the matchup set for Oct. 17 and Georgia entering as the favorite. For the Tigers, it is another reminder of how quickly the SEC race can shift, especially when a team like Georgia is already looking at the next challenge before the celebration from the last one has fully faded. [Read more 🡒]