The Stretch 4: A fitting finale for Auburn's championship season
The Tigers have a chance to set records and hit the postseason with another big win. And, of course, it's coming against their fiercest rival.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
AUBURN — Judging by Quad 1A victories, no team in college basketball has won more big games this season than Auburn.
But the Tigers are currently tied, at nine, with their biggest rival — Alabama.
On the whole, Auburn has done more with its opportunities this season. That’s why the Tigers were able to put rally towels that read “SEC CHAMPIONS” in the seats at Neville Arena on Friday afternoon.
In overall Quad 1 games, Auburn is 15-3. Alabama is 9-7. But, when it comes to the toughest subsection of matchups, Auburn is 9-3 in Quad 1A games, and Alabama is close behind at 9-5.
The Tigers might be outright SEC champions with a 15-2 conference record heading into the final day of the regular season. And the Crimson Tide might be several games back at 13-5, having lost four out of their last six in a downright brutal stretch run.
But don’t let that difference in record fool you. Auburn knows completing the season sweep of Alabama on Saturday is a tall task.
“If we don't win tomorrow, it won't be that we're in a slump,” Bruce Pearl said Friday. “We lost at Texas A&M, and we're playing the No. 5-ranked team in the country. We have to play brilliantly tomorrow. We have to shoot it. We have to keep them off the three point line. We got to play back in transition.”
Auburn did those things less than a month ago in Tuscaloosa, when it beat Alabama wire-to-wire in the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 game in the history of the SEC.
The Tigers used that to spark their run to a championship that they won’t have to share. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, lost a pair of tough road games at Missouri and Tennessee while also dropping their own home matchup with Florida.
While Alabama head coach Nate Oats said Friday that there wasn’t much more to play for but pride, Pearl and his Auburn team see things differently.
A win over Alabama would give Auburn a 28 overall victories and 16 SEC victories in the regular season. Both of those would set new program records, breaking ties with the 2021-22 team led by Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler.
“That's certainly notable,” Pearl said. “Got a chance to sweep Alabama, which is difficult to do, but let alone difficult to do when they're a top-five team in the country. Obviously, to be able to do that, we're going to have to play great basketball. We played one of our best games in Tuscaloosa.”
From the moment the SEC unveiled its conference schedule for the season, this game was circled on everyone’s calendars. It’s been rare for Auburn and Alabama to play on a Saturday, let alone the final Saturday of the regular season.
That hasn’t happened since 2010. Back then, Auburn and Alabama were both hovering around .500, and neither team came close to making the NCAA Tournament. Now, they’re two of the very best programs in all of college basketball.
A win for Auburn would turn Neville Arena to an all-out party. Students have been camping out for days. It’s the last time anyone will see this historic team play at home. It’s also the final home game for several seniors, including National Player of the Year candidate Johni Broome.
“It’s going to be an emotional game,” Broome said Friday. “Auburn’s been good to me. This is my last time ever playing in Neville, in front of the crowd, in front of the Jungle. It’s going to be fun, though. But kinda like a bittersweet moment, especially against Alabama.”
Stages don’t come any more set than this one. It’s time for everyone wearing orange and blue inside Neville Arena to give all they’ve got for one final game with this team.
To borrow a phrase from Pearl, it’s going to take special — especially after the disappointment of a road loss at Texas A&M this week. But this team is plenty special.
To get you ready for this final Saturday showdown, here is the full Auburn vs. Alabama preview in this week’s edition of The Stretch 4.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)