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Auburn Basketball: Breaking down why Tigers are so special in 2021-22 season

By Caleb Hightower

Dec 4, 2021; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers forward Chris Moore (5) and players on the bench react to a late 3-point shot late in the second half against the Yale Bulldogs at Auburn Arena. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 4, 2021; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers forward Chris Moore (5) and players on the bench react to a late 3-point shot late in the second half against the Yale Bulldogs at Auburn Arena. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports /
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Florida Gators forward Anthony Duruji Auburn Basketball forward Jabari Smith John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
Florida Gators forward Anthony Duruji Auburn Basketball forward Jabari Smith John Reed-USA TODAY Sports /

Auburn Basketball has started the 2021-22 college basketball season with a stellar 18-1 overall record and 7-0 conference record, which is truly amazing when you consider the fact that the Tigers entered the year with a noticeably different ball club. As expected, Sharife Cooper and JT Thor declared for the NBA Draft after the 2020-21 season, while Justin Powell and Jamal Johnson opted to explore other collegiate opportunities once the year came to a close.

So, what did Bruce Pearl do in the offseason? Well, in addition to adding 5-star freshman forward, Jabari Smith, the 2-time SEC Coach of the Year picked up three quality transfers in Walker Kessler (UNC), Wendell Green Jr. (EKU), and K.D. Johnson (Georgia).

I knew that the Tigers would compete on a nightly basis, but I was almost certain that they would stumble early on and drop a few winnable contests as a result. However, since their heartbreaking loss to UConn in the Battle 4 Atlantis quarterfinal round, the Tigers have rattled off 15 straight victories between late-November and late-January.

I learned a lot about this year’s Auburn squad when the Tigers trailed Saint Louis by double-digits in the second half and found themselves locked in a tie with Alabama after leading for most of the game. The Tigers easily could have folded in both of those situations and paid the price for it later on, but Pearl’s resilient squad remained solid and ultimately secured two pivotal road wins.

So, now that we’ve established that Pearl’s squad is red-hot at the moment, I think it’s time for me to thoroughly explain why the 2021-22 Auburn Tigers are such a special group.

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