Some may believe that a win over an upper-ranked opponent would be enough to get some votes in the polls, but others — namely, the voters — don’t seem to agree.
Despite a victory over the then-No. 14 Tennessee Volunteers, Auburn’s basketball team still did not receive any votes in the final coaches poll of the regular season. The win did definitively affect Tennessee, though, as the Volunteers skidded five spots down to No. 19 after being defeated by Bruce Pearl’s squad.
As such, Auburn will enter the SEC tournament as an unranked team, and it will certainly have some competition if it’s to win it. Four SEC teams are currently ranked, and all of those teams — Kentucky, Alabama, Tennessee and Texas A&M — have beaten the Tigers once already this year. Auburn can’t face a repeat of any of those games if it hopes to win the SEC tournament and take that momentum forward into the upcoming NCAA tournament in the middle of the month.
Take a look at the latest USA TODAY Sports Basketball Coaches Poll Below:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Change |
| 1 | Houston | 27-2 | 794(27) | – |
| 2 | Alabama | 25-4 | 752 (2) | – |
| 3 | Kansas | 24-5 | 729 (3) | +1 |
| 4 | UCLA | 25-4 | 728 | -1 |
| 5 | Purdue | 24-5 | 630 | – |
| 6 | Marquette | 23-6 | 626 | +3 |
| 7 | Texas | 22-7 | 558 | +1 |
| 8 | Baylor | 21-8 | 527 | +2 |
| 9 | Arizona | 24-5 | 518 | -2 |
| 10 | Gonzaga | 25-5 | 515 | +2 |
| 11 | Kansas State | 22-7 | 469 | +5 |
| 12 | Virginia | 21-6 | 389 | -6 |
| 13 | Indiana | 20-9 | 362 | +4 |
| 14 | Tennessee | 21-8 | 353 | -1 |
| 15 | Miami | 23-6 | 349 | -4 |
| 16 | Saint Mary’s | 25-6 | 339 | -2 |
| 17 | Xavier | 21-8 | 274 | -2 |
| 18 | Connecticut | 22-7 | 254 | +5 |
| 19 | San Diego State | 23-5 | 251 | +1 |
| 20 | Providence | 21-8 | 239 | -2 |
| 21 | Texas A&M | 21-8 | 113 | +4 |
| 22 | TCU | 19-10 | 109 | +4 |
| 23 | Creighton | 18-11 | 95 | -4 |
| 24 | Maryland | 20-9 | 82 | +6 |
| 25 | Pittsburgh | 21-8 | 64 | +3 |
Schools Dropped Out
No. 21 Iowa State; No. 22 Northwestern; No. 24 NC State
Others Receiving Votes
Northwestern 52; Kentucky 49; NC State 48; Iowa State 42; Duke 29; Florida Atlantic 26; Oral Roberts 11; Southern California 9; Nevada 5; Toledo 3; Clemson 3; Kent St. 2; Boise St. 2
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