While it is only the preseason, Auburn fans got their first look at the men’s basketball team on Wednesday night, falling to Florida State 82-71 at the Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham, Alabama.
The game won’t go to the Tigers’ record for the 2026-27 season, but we were able to get a good look at what Auburn is going to look like entering a season that head coach Steven Pearl will look to finish with an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Here’s what we took away from it.
Auburn’s Frontcourt Has Work to Do
After the game, Pearl said that his group got “punked” by the Florida State bigs, and rightfully so. One of the Seminoles’ centers, Marcus Ponder, had 12 offensive rebounds and 21 total boards.
Auburn didn’t have a single player with more than eight rebounds, to put it into perspective.
I can’t talk about them being difference-makers if they’re not going to play with a different level of intensity,” Pearl said after the game.
The Tigers didn’t have Creighton transfer Owen Freeman, who gives them a different style at center, but there needs to be cleaner basketball from the likes of Narcisse Ngoy and Bukky Oboye moving forward. Of course, it’s a new team, so it takes time for aspects like that to gel.
It wasn’t pretty on Wednesday, though.
2. Backcourt Will Get Back to Old Ways
One of the biggest pieces of news for Auburn was the return of both guards, Tahaad Pettiford and Kevin Overton. However, from an overall playmaking standpoint, there were better days.
Pettiford led the team in scoring with 20 points and four threes, while Overton only added 10 points from 15 attempted shots. Ball movement wasn’t the best in Birmingham, though, only recording a combined two assists and seven turnovers.
Pettiford and Overton were both 15-point and 14-point scorers last season, respectively, and that number will go back to the mean over the course of the season. However, the alarm bells are from the assist-to-turnover ratio, which allowed the Seminoles to take over.
I wouldn’t consider it something to worry about, as it is an exhibition, but something to keep in mind to fix before the season begins.
3. Doing the Dirty Work is Necessary
Auburn lost the turnover margin, 18-14, the rebounding margin, 51-40, and the second-chance points margin, 15-6. While both teams shot the ball at the same rate, these winning metrics were not won.
Florida State also shot 40 free throws on Wednesday. Auburn only shot 14.
A new-look team means that sloppy basketball isn’t out of the question, as well as Pearl needing some of his players back that will be major cogs in Auburn’s rotation next season. However, if that’s not fixed by SEC play, it could lead to a difficult season on the horizon in the 2026-27 season.
It is a preseason game, though, so changes will be seen for an Auburn team looking to bring momentum to the Plains following its NIT win last postseason.
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