Why Auburn basketball’s Bruce Pearl dialed up a scary-looking schedule: ‘It’s what we worked for’

There really isn’t a word or saying that truly encapsulates what’s ahead for Auburn basketball this season.

Calling the Tigers’ 2024-25 schedule a “gauntlet” would be putting it nicely. Saying it’s a “baptism by fire” doesn’t paint the full picture either.

KenPom’s preseason rankings came out Monday.

The good news? Auburn ranks third in the nation — besting rival Alabama by one spot.

The not-so-good news? Auburn is set to see No. 1 Houston, No. 2 Duke, No. 7 Iowa State and No. 10 Purdue, while also possibly seeing No. 5 UConn and No. 14 North Carolina — and that’s all before the Tigers kickoff their SEC slate of games, which features matchups against 10 more teams ranked inside of KenPom’s preseason top 50.

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“You’d better be careful what you wish for,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said Tuesday when asked about the Tigers’ schedule during SEC Media Day from the Grand Bohemian Mountain Brook hotel in Birmingham.

It was a fitting quip. Because, believe it or not, Auburn’s treacherous schedule is exactly what Pearl asked for.

“You can’t always control the recruiting, you can’t control the transfer portal, you can’t control a lot of things that are happening,” Pearl said. “But you can control who you schedule.”

And that Pearl’s wishes came true and Auburn’s schedule shook out the way it did, it speaks volumes about the respect other programs have for what Pearl has built in the quaint college town in eastern Alabama.

Houston coach Kelvin Sampson could’ve turned up his nose to meeting Auburn on a neutral floor. Purdue coach Matt Painter, fresh off of a national championship game appearance, could’ve told Pearl to kick rocks when a two-game series in Birmingham and Indianapolis was brought to the table.

Instead, Sampson and Painter agreed.

“It’s what we’ve worked for,” Pearl said. “I just think from the standpoint of our players — I think our players deserve the opportunity to play against the best and have that great, great challenge.”

Pearl isn’t expecting the Tigers to get out of nonconference play unscathed.

“We’re going to have some adversity. We’re going to lose some games in nonconference, perhaps more than we have in the past, just because of the strength of the schedule,” Pearl said.

The key after the fact, Pearl said, is how Auburn will bounce back when adversity strikes. Because trust this — once the Tigers hit the floor for conference play, the road doesn’t get any easier.

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“The league is probably gonna beat each other up pretty good,” said Pearl, a self-proclaimed “cagey veteran” in the SEC. “Handling losses, getting to the next play, getting to the next game is going to be really, really important.”

Fortunately for Pearl and the Tigers, Auburn boasts a relatively seasoned roster, which is bolstered by the return of All-American big man Johni Broome. Alongside Broome, the Tigers return five other upperclassmen, while adding a trio of seniors in Furman transfer JP Pegues, SMU transfer Ja’Heim Hudson and Georgia Tech transfer Miles Kelly.

And while the age and experience of Auburn’s roster is sure to benefit the Tigers, Pearl doesn’t expect that to be their No. 1 advantage.

“I would look at Auburn being very similar to a year ago,” Pearl said. “Our greatest strength is going to be our depth. We are going to play 10 guys double-digit minutes, and when we go to our bench, we’re not going to drop off.”

And given the schedule that lies ahead of Auburn and another trip to the NCAA tournament, the Tigers can’t afford to drop off.

“We’ve got all we can handle for sure,” Pearl said of Auburn’s schedule. “But it’s what we built.”

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Did Auburn basketball’s Bruce Pearl do the Tigers a favor with a tough schedule?