It's been an uneven week for multiple teams ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press Top 25 poll. Iowa State, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Marquette and Kentucky all have single digits next to their names (in the AP poll for now) but lost as favorites this week.
Auburn was fine, though.
Even though the Tigers had two games against ranked opponents — one at home, one on the road — and were without their best player (Johni Broome), they still completed a 2-0 week. First, on Tuesday, they pounded Mississippi State 88-66. Then, on Saturday, they won 70-68 at Georgia to extend their winning streak to 10 games and remain No. 1 in Sunday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings.
"Just a great win" Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said after his Tigers held on for the two-point victory that featured the Bulldogs missing two potential game-tying shots in the final seven seconds. "Road wins are hard to come by in this league — especially road wins against one of your arch-rivals and a ranked team like Georgia. I thought that getting off to the start that we got off to sent a very strong message that we did not come here without our best player to [just] try to give you a great fight. We came here to try to win the game."
With the win, Auburn is now 17-1 and in possession of a national-best 10 Quadrant 1 victories heading into a stretch where the Tigers have no mid-week game. That's obviously huge considering Broome, a projected First Team All-American, remains sidelined with an ankle injury suffered in last weekend's win at South Carolina.
Will Broome play Saturday vs. Tennessee?
That remains unclear.
Either way, the Tigers' showdown with UT will provide our latest edition of Pearl coaching against the school he led to a No. 1 ranking in February 2008. Now, Pearl has Auburn ranked No. 1 for the second time in a four-year span, enhancing his Hall of Fame-worthy credentials. But Pearl will likely have to beat his old school Saturday to keep that No. 1 ranking — especially with Duke, the only team that's beaten Auburn so far this season, on a 12-game winning streak that has the Blue Devils up to No. 2 in the Top 25 And 1.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Tahaad Pettiford finished with 24 points and two steals in Saturday's 70-68 win at Georgia. The Tigers' next game is Saturday against Tennessee. | -- | 21-1 |
| 2 |  | Cooper Flagg finished with 28 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 88-63 win at Boston College. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday at Wake Forest. | 1 | 20-2 |
| 3 |  | Curtis Jones finished with four turnovers and zero assists in Saturday's 64-57 loss at West Virginia. The Cyclones' next game is Tuesday against UCF. | 1 | 17-5 |
| 4 |  | Grant Nelson finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 102-97 win at Kentucky. The Crimson Tide's next game is Tuesday against Vanderbilt. | 4 | 19-3 |
| 5 |  | Alijah Martin finished with 22 points and six rebounds in Saturday's 84-60 win over Texas. The Gators' next game is Wednesday at South Carolina. | 2 | 19-3 |
| 6 |  | Jordan Gainey was 1-of-6 from the field in Saturday's 76-75 loss at Vanderbilt. The Vols' next game is Tuesday against Mississippi State. | 1 | 19-4 |
| 7 |  | Andrew Carr was 1-of-4 from the field in Saturday's 102-97 loss to Alabama. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday at Vanderbilt. | 1 | 15-7 |
| 8 |  | Chase Ross was 1-of-5 from the field in Saturday's 59-57 win at Marquette. The Golden Eagles' next game is Tuesday at Seton Hall. | 4 | 18-5 |
| 9 |  | Frankie Fidler finished with 18 points and four steals in Wednesday's 90-85 win over Penn State. The Spartans' next game is Sunday against Illinois. | -- | 18-4 |
| 10 |  | Riley Kugel finished with 21 points and two steals in Saturday's 84-81 overtime win over Ole Miss. The Bulldogs' next game is Tuesday at Tennessee. | 1 | 16-6 |
| 11 |  | Trey Kaufman-Renn finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 65-58 win at Oregon. The Boilermakers' next game is Tuesday against Ohio State. | 2 | 18-5 |
| 12 |  | Hunter Dickinson finished with 25 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 84-74 win over Kansas State. The Jayhawks' next game is Wednesday at TCU. | -- | 16-6 |
| 13 |  | Jackson Shelstad was 4-of-12 from the field in Saturday's 65-58 loss to Purdue. The Ducks' next game is Tuesday against Washington. | 3 | 16-7 |
| 14 |  | Sean Pedulla was 3-of-12 from 3-point range in Saturday's 84-81 overtime loss at Mississippi State. The Rebels' next game is Wednesday against Texas A&M. | -- | 17-6 |
| 15 |  | Kylan Boswell finished with 22 points and seven rebounds in Tuesday's 94-69 win at Indiana. The Illini's next game is Sunday at Michigan State. | -- | 15-8 |
| 16 |  | Zhuric Phelps finished with 13 points and six assists in Saturday's 68-57 win over LSU. The Aggies' next game is Wednesday at Ole Miss. | -- | 17-5 |
| 17 |  | Colby Rogers was 2-of-9 from the field in Thursday's 88-81 loss at Temple. The Tigers' next game is Sunday at Charlotte. | -- | 19-4 |
| 18 |  | J'Wan Roberts finished with 21 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 69-68 win at UCF. The Cougars' next game is Tuesday against Utah. | 2 | 18-4 |
| 19 |  | Roddy Gayle Jr. was 0-of-6 from the field in Thursday's 84-81 loss at Minnesota. The Wolverines' next game is Sunday against Northwestern. | -- | 17-5 |
| 20 |  | John Blackwell finished with 28 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 84-69 win at USC. The Badgers' next game is Tuesday at UCLA. | 1 | 18-5 |
| 21 |  | Mark Mitchell finished with 17 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 83-65 win over Arkansas. The Tigers' next game is Tuesday at Texas. | 1 | 17-5 |
| 22 |  | Alex Karaban was 3-of-12 from the field in Saturday's 68-63 loss to Creighton. The Huskies' next game is Tuesday against Butler. | 4 | 16-6 |
| 23 |  | Silas Demary Jr. was 3-of-10 from the field in Saturday's 70-68 loss to Auburn. The Bulldogs' next game is Wednesday at Arkansas. | -- | 16-7 |
| 24 |  | RJ Luis Jr. finished with 24 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 79-51 win at St. John's. The Red Storm's next game is Wednesday against Xavier. | 1 | 20-3 |
| 25 |  | Javon Small finished with 27 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 64-57 win over Iowa State. The Mountaineers' next game is Tuesday against Arizona State. | NR | 14-8 |
| 26 |  | Reyne Smith finished with 19 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 81-67 win over Virginia. The Cardinals' next game is Tuesday at SMU. | NR | 17-6 |
