Ticket punched: Auburn WBB makes NCAA Tournament

Auburn women's basketball is officially going dancing.

The Tigers will participate in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, it was announced on Sunday during ESPN's selection show.

It will be the Tigers' first NCAA Tournament appearance under head coach Johnnie Harris, who is in just her third year at the helm on the Plains.

Auburn was placed as a No. 11 seed and will face off against the 11-seeded Arizona Wildcats in Storrs, Connecticut, in a play-in game before the Round of 64.

"We're excited to be in, and we'll just prepare to play that play-in game and that's just another opportunity for our team to play," Harris said. "We'll go back tonight, get ready, practice tomorrow and maybe have to leave tomorrow and go get ready to play. It's never been easy for us, so we don't expect that. I expect our team to come out ready to play."

The winner between the Tigers and Wildcats will play No. 6 seed Syracuse.

Auburn last won an NCAA Tournament game in March 2016 as the No. 9 seed Tigers beat St. John's in the first round of the tournament before bowing out in the Round of 32.

The Tigers accumulated 20 wins over the season, also for the first time since 2019, and closed the season winning four of their final five games to improve their tournament resume.

Auburn picked up important wins in the season with victories over tournament teams LSU, Alabama and Texas A&M. The Tigers also claimed an important conference road win over Florida to end the regular season and won a game over Arkansas in the SEC Tournament.

"I like our team's resilience. I think we bounce back really well," Harris said. "I think our team has some toughness, so we'll put all that together and take it on the road to Connecticut and put our best foot forward."

Auburn's matchup against Arizona does not currently have a set date or time, but the Tigers and Wildcats will meet on either March 20 or 21.