AUBURN, Ala. – In the 20 years since he first joined the Southeastern Conference, Auburn coach Bruce Pearl has seen the SEC transform from top-heavy to a top-to-bottom powerhouse with 10 ranked teams including half of the top 10.
“Never seen anything like it,” said Pearl, noting that all 16 SEC teams have recorded at least 10 wins heading into Saturday’s conference openers, including the country’s last three unbeatens in No. 1 Tennessee, No. 6 Florida and No. 12 Oklahoma. “It’s going to be a battle of attrition.”
Pearl’s No. 2 Auburn Tigers are at the forefront of the SEC’s ascendance, ranked No. 2 after racking up four ranked non-conference wins.
“In the last five years, nobody has sent more guys to the NBA than the SEC,” he said. “Fans want to see great players and that’s what they’re seeing with SEC basketball.
“The SEC is the best conference in America for a reason and basketball has finally caught up.”
Pearl’s 11th SEC season at Auburn begins with a Tigers vs. Tigers matchup when Missouri visits Neville Arena. The visiting Tigers are 11-2 with a win over No. 7 Kansas on their resume after going winless in SEC play last season.
“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,” Pearl said. “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.”
Missouri tuned up for its trip to the Plains by beating Alabama State 82-65 Monday at Mizzou Arena.
“It’s a good team,” Pearl said. “Way better revamped roster. A really good offensive team and defensively, they turn you over like crazy. They create a lot of offense with their defense.”
It will be the SEC debut for Auburn’s newcomers, including transfer Miles Kelly and freshman Tahaad Pettiford.
“I’m super excited,” said Kelly, who played previously at Georgia Tech. “It’s going to be the first time I’ll see The Jungle for real, SEC opener. It’s going to be a fun time.”
“It’s going to be exciting,” Pettiford said. “All the hype around it, how Neville gets around these types of games. I can’t wait to see how that is.”
Seeking its sixth consecutive win and looking to improve to 7-0 at home, Auburn (12-1) hosts Missouri (11-2) Saturday at 3 p.m. CT on SEC Network. Andy Burcham and Randall Dickey will bring the action to listeners on the Auburn Sports Network.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer