The Stretch 4: Auburn's Act II begins with Missouri
After a historic run in non-conference play, the Tigers will open their SEC gauntlet with a visit from a vastly improved team from Mizzou.
(JF: Like with several of our Film Rooms during non-conference play, my brother is going to help out by co-writing more basketball newsletters during the SEC season. So, if you find something in these pieces that feels particularly insightful, you really know where it came from.)
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
AUBURN — Act I is over.
Earlier this week, the curtain lowered on what was the most impressive opening sequence in Auburn basketball history. Saturday afternoon, it will raise again.
This time, what’s waiting on the other side is an 18-game journey through what appears to be the most grueling conference schedule the sport has ever assembled.
Act II begins in Neville Arena, where Auburn will host Missouri in a highly anticipated SEC opener. The visiting Tigers will be looking for their first regular-season conference victory in 22 months, after failing to find one last year. They ended Dennis Gates’ second season on a nightmarish 19-game losing streak.
“A team like Missouri is hungry,” Bruce Pearl said Friday. “Missouri is looking for its first conference win in a while. … In all my years of coaching, I have never seen a team that struggled to win in conference that played as hard and as well and as together as Dennis Gates' Missouri team did a year ago. They didn't quit. They played for 40 minutes. They played the right way, in spite of not having success.
“To me, that's the mark of a great coach and a great program.”
But this season’s Missouri team looks completely different. As Pearl said, the black-and-gold Tigers have a “way better, revamped roster.” They’ve already blown past last season’s win total (8) with an impressive 11-2 non-conference record, which included an early December upset over then-No. 1 team and bitter rival Kansas.
Auburn’s road through its first 13 games has been well-documented here, but here’s the quick rundown: The Tigers took on their toughest challenge in program history and came out on the other side with just a single blemish, already racking up a ridiculous six Quadrant 1 victories.
Some metrics have it as the most impressive non-conference performance ever measured. Because of that, Auburn is now unanimous No. 1 team in college basketball by every computer-based predictive metric.
This contrasts significantly with the road Missouri — currently outside of the top 50 in KenPom — has taken to get here. As mentioned above, yes, they played and defeated a top-ranked team. But that game accounts for their lone Quad 1 win in just three opportunities to this point.
Missouri has had the privilege of playing 11 of its first 13 games in Mizzou Arena, with only one true road contest, a season-opening loss to Memphis exactly two months ago. It also had one neutral-site game, a 3-point loss to Illinois just down the road in St. Louis.
So, while Mizzou will not come in with damage on the tournament resume, it hasn’t had nearly the same level of tests as Auburn and others in the SEC have.
According to KenPom, Missouri has had the fourth-easiest path through the non-conference in the entire country — ranking 361st out of 364 teams.
That same measure has Auburn’s strength of schedule at No. 14 overall and No. 5 among power-conference programs. So, for very different reasons, both teams will enter conference play with confidence, momentum, and something to prove.
“We just see an aggressive team,” senior wing Miles Kelly said. “They're real hungry. Of course, we know they didn't get a chance to win a game last year in the SEC, so we know this is their first opportunity. They'll be real hungry. We're very mindful of that, and we're taking them very seriously in our preparation for that game.”
This game marks the beginning of what promises to be one of the most exciting stretches in Auburn basketball history.
Missouri will be coming in looking to prove their record is no fluke and that they can hand out another upset, but Auburn’s ability to dominate the glass and protect the basketball sets them up well. Early-season trends are sure to be tested on Saturday afternoon in front of a raucous Neville Arena crowd.
It’s the tip-off of the most anticipated conference slate we have ever seen. The stage is set, and the curtain is about to be lifted.
It’s almost time for SEC basketball on The Plains.
For a full preview of Auburn vs. Missouri, here’s this week’s edition of The Stretch 4.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)