Auburn learns bracket position in Maui Invitational
AUBURN — Auburn basketball knows what side of the bracket it will be on in the Maui Invitational.
Per multiple reports and confirmed through sources, Auburn will play Iowa State in the first game of the Maui tournament. The second game will be against either North Carolina or Dayton. The third game will be against either UConn, Memphis, Michigan State or Colorado, depending on how the games play out after the first two games.
The tournament will take place on November 27-29.
Auburn and Iowa State are tied 2-2 all time, with the Tigers winning the last matchup inside Neville Arena in January of 2020 as a part of the SEC-Big 12 Challenge. Auburn lost in Ames, Iowa during the 2013-14 season by 29 points, lost by 19 points to Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2000, and won by two points in December of 1986 during a neutral-site game in El Paso, Tex.
Auburn will play Houston at the Toyota Center on November 9.
Shortly following that tournament, Auburn will play at Duke as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge. Pearl can’t wait for that one, as it’s a bucket list game for not only fans, but Pearl himself.
“It will be a bucket list for me. To coach in that environment against a great coaching staff,” Pearl said. “They are picked number one in the country by almost every poll. They have three or four guys that have a chance to be first rounders, so our guys will be excited about the opportunity. We will have to really play well and play physical, play smart and make some shots. It’s definitely a bucket list.”
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Auburn will play Ohio State in Atlanta on December 14. That is a one-time game set for this season.
“I think the biggest thing is now, we have the program to the point where they want to match us up against Duke. Or, we get to go to the Maui Invitational against teams like UConn, Michigan State and North Carolina. Then we made some decisions,” Pearl said.
“It’s easier to get a program there than keep a program there. I think the best way for us to keep it there is to act like we belong there. The only way you can act like you belong there is to play the best.”
Auburn is now guaranteed to play Nos. 1, 2, 3, 16 and 34 during non-conference play per Torvik’s preseason projections, with the possibility of adding any of Nos. 6, 12, 17 and/or 25, depending on what happens in Maui.
