Auburn (18-13, 7-11 in SEC) is young and talented, but they’re not playing their best basketball at the end of the season. They come into the tournament after losing five of their last seven games.
There’s reason for optimism for the future, because each of Auburn’s top four leading scorers are freshmen, including Mustapha Heron, who is ninth in the SEC with 15.2 points per game. And maybe the most important thing the Tigers have going for them is that you can never count out a Bruce Pearl-coached team.
Missouri (7-23, 2-16 in SEC) comes into this game with very little to be excited about.