No. 8: Auburn continues historic rise in AP poll

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Feb. 5, 2018

By Greg Ostendorf
AuburnTigers.com

AUBURN, Ala. -- How high will Auburn climb? First, it was the top 25. Then it was the top 15. On Monday, following back-to-back wins over Ole Miss and Vanderbilt last week, the Tigers jumped three spots to No. 8 in the AP poll, cracking the top 10 for the first time since 2000.

It's the program's highest ranking since they were No. 7 on Jan. 24, 2000.

Don't tell Auburn, though. Don't tell the Tigers (21-2, 9-1) about their rank or the fact that they still have a two-game lead in the SEC. They want to keep playing with that chip.

"We are still the underdog," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said after Saturday's win over Vanderbilt. "We are the winningest underdog in college basketball. That's who Auburn is right now, and that's who we're going to stay."

The road doesn't get any easier for the Tigers this week. They host Texas A&M on Wednesday before traveling to Georgia on Saturday.

Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf