Auburn will start the season ranked No. 11 following the release of AP's preseason poll Monday morning.
With its highest and most recent preseason ranking since starting the season at No. 4 in 2000, Auburn will be returning six of its nine-man rotation. It also marks the program's fifth preseason ranking.
The Tigers trail No. 2 Kentucky and No. 6 Tennessee as the third-highest team in the SEC. This follows Auburn being picked to finish third in the conference last week.
After finishing the season with its first regular season championship since that 2000 season, head coach Bruce Pearl holds the mantra of "unfinished business" with losses in the conference and NCAA tournaments.
"I think it’s phenomenal that we’re a preseason top-10 or top-15 team," Pearl said in late September. "I think it’s great. I used to spend my whole career fighting to get on the cover of Street and Smith’s, or have Blue Ribbon Basketball pick us any place but the bottom."
Auburn will open the season at home against South Alabama on Nov. 6. The game will be aired on the SEC Network starting at 8 p.m. CT.
The Top 25
1. Kansas (1,581 pts, 37 first-place votes)
2. Kentucky (1,529, 19)
3. Gonzaga (1,461, 1)
4. Duke (1452, 4)
5. Virginia (1,286, 2)
6. Tennessee (1,268, 1)
7. Nevada (1,230)
8. North Carolina (1,221)
9. Villanova (1,085, 1)
10. Michigan State (1,024)
11. Auburn (974)
12. Kansas State (922)
13. West Virginia (678)
14. Oregon (638)
15. Va Tech (630)
16. Syracuse (620)
17. Florida St (530)
18. Miss. St (451)
19. Michigan (437)
20. TCU (311)
21. UCLA (297)
22. Clemson (268)
23. LSU (187)
24. Purdue (170)
25. Washington (165)
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