Auburn left out on Selection Sunday, misses NCAA Tournament for first time since 2021

The 2025-26 basketball season officially came to a close for the Auburn Tigers this weekend, as they didn’t hear their name called on Selection Sunday as one of the 68 teams to earn an NCAA Tournament bid.

Steven Pearl’s inaugural season as head coach on the Plains marked the first time Auburn hasn’t danced in five years, as the Tigers have made the tournament the last five years.

Auburn entered Sunday with a glimmer of hope, as it was listed as one of the first four teams out according to ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi. Lundardi’s bubble teams that competed with the Tigers for the final at-large bids mainly included Missouri, Texas, SMU, Santa Clara, and Miami (OH).

However, the selection committee ultimately chose Texas, NC State, Miami (OH) and SMU over the Tigers, despite Auburn’s edge in numerous college basketball metrics.

One of the most controversial selections will certainly be surrounding the Longhorns, as Texas fell short of Auburn in multiple metrics. The Tigers finished with a higher WAB (wins above bubble), the same amount of Quad 1 and Quad 2 wins combined, and had a much higher strength of schedule – not to mention, Auburn boasted the head-to-head victory over the Longhorns.

Texas ended the season at 18-14 overall and 9-9 in the SEC, which is two fewer total losses than Auburn notched.

Auburn also beat NC State in the regular season as a part of the SEC/ACC Challenge, but the Wolfpack held a slightly higher NET ranking than the Tigers.

Auburn finished the year with a 17-16 overall record and 7-11 in conference play, and its total number of losses almost certainly played a factor in the committee’s decision. No team has ever earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament with 16 losses or more, and that trend remained true on Sunday.

The Tigers boasted one of the best strength of schedules in the nation, but poor performances down the homestretch of the season proved too costly to the committee.

Auburn faced three of the four 1-seeds – Michigan, Florida, and Arizona – and defeated the Gators in Gainesville for the first time since 1996. The Tigers also played Purdue, Houston and St. John’s in their historically tough nonconference slate, and managed to beat the Johnnies in November.

However, Auburn lost nine of its last 12 games, with losses to Mississippi State, Oklahoma, and Ole Miss likely knocking the Tigers out of the field. Many believed that they would’ve clinched their spot in the tournament with a win over Tennessee in the second round of the SEC Tournament on Thursday, but a second-half collapse put the Tigers’ tournament hopes in even further jeopardy.

While their NCAA Tournament hopes have vanished, it’s unclear whether the Tigers will accept an NIT bid if it is extended to them. Either way, the first wave of NIT games starts on Tuesday.