The debut Associated Press poll has been released, meaning that the wait time for the 2024-25 season continues to shrink.
The Auburn Tigers will begin the season with high expectations as AP voters have voted Auburn to take the No. 11 spot in the debut poll, up seven places from the final AP poll of the 2023-24 season.
Auburn, who is set to face a challenging slate this season, will meet up with 14 teams who are either ranked in the AP top 25, or are receiving votes. In nonconference play, the Tigers will battle No. 4 Houston, No. 5 Iowa State, No. 7 Duke, No. 14 Purdue, and Ohio State, who is receiving votes. Auburn will also have the chance to pad its resume during the Maui Invitational in November as No. 3 UConn and No. 9 North Carolina also make up the field.
In SEC play, Auburn will battle eight top-25 squads including No. 2 Alabama, No. 12 Tennessee, and No. 13 Texas A&M. Arkansas (No. 16), Texas (No. 19), Florida (No. 21), Kentucky (No. 23), and Ole Miss (No. 24) round out the SEC’s representation in the top 25 while Mississippi State is knocking on the door.
The SEC leads the way with nine teams represented in the poll. Next is the Big 12 with six teams, the Big Ten has four, and the Big East has three. The ACC is underrepresented as only Duke and North Carolina earned preseason slots. Finally, Gonzaga is the lone team to represent the West Coast Conference at No. 6.
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