NCAA Basketball: Arizona, Duke, and San Diego State rises in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
22. Auburn (10-2)
Things haven’t been perfect by any means at Auburn this year, including a mind-blowing home loss against Appalachian State just four weeks ago. Their big wins haven’t looked as big, as Indiana, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, and USC are each underachieving this season. Regardless of all of that, the Tigers look extremely potent and could be one of the faces atop the SEC two months from now.
Saturday night action was their first game back after Christmas and brought Auburn another very winnable affair against Chattanooga. They played their way to a 101-66 victory over the Mocs, topping 100 points for the second time this season. Jaylin Williams led with 21 points while Johni Broome had 18 points and 8 rebounds in another nice performance.
Without any major victories, Auburn has flown under the radar a fair bit this season, but their metrics are sensational and they’ve performed well (usually) when called upon. Auburn’s offense has been extremely potent in recent weeks and the defense certainly has shined at times as well. Bruce Pearl’s squad faces Penn on Tuesday before conference play starts on the road at Arkansas; not the easiest start for the Tigers.