Paul Finebaum discusses what Auburn's hot streak means to the SEC

Auburn basketball has a chance to make history in Bruce Pearl’s eighth season at Auburn, as the Tigers have a clear-cut path to becoming the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 Poll, a distinction the program has never before received.

Heading into Monday’s AP Top 25 Poll update, many believed that Auburn was worthy of the No. 1 spot after beating a ranked Alabama team on the road and taking care of Ole Miss in the same week. However, despite Auburn’s continued success — and several high-profile, highly-ranked programs suffering upset losses — the Tigers came in at No. 2 in the AP Poll.

Still, the Tigers have as good a chance as they ever have had under Pearl at nabbing the No. 1 spot. This week, they’ll first have to take care of Georgia, likely the worst team in the SEC, before a much tougher task: a home contest against Kentucky, which erupted in a 107-point performance against Tennessee Sunday. ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum believes that this is just the beginning for Auburn, which is proving its incredibly high ceiling under Pearl’s tutelage.

“I think it affirms what we saw three years ago, when they made it to the Final Four. I think it validates the decision to bring Bruce (Pearl) in there initially,” Finebaum said of Auburn’s run. “He’s a transcendent coach, and I think a lot of folks have tried to keep him down or kick him, but he has a way. Players love him. They embrace him. They play harder for him than maybe some other people, and I think it would really be wonderful.”

Auburn actually received the most No. 1 votes in the latest AP Poll, but the Tigers still found themselves in the No. 2 slot, thanks to Gonzaga sticking at No. 1. The Bulldogs received 11 fewer first-place votes, but with one voter slotting Auburn at No. 9, the Tigers placed in behind.

“For a program like Auburn, (the potential of being No. 1) means something,” Finebaum said. “It’s a way to continue to brand it, and I’m really happy for (Pearl) because I dare say that many of us thought Bruce was on his way out two or three years ago because of the allegations, because of the trouble.”

AP voting breakdown: How Auburn had the most No. 1 votes but ranked No. 2

Auburn kept its hot start to the season going this past week, as the Tigers pulled off a road win over then-No. 24 Alabama followed by another road victory over Ole Miss, a performance that many thought would secure Bruce Pearl’s program its first No. 1 AP Poll ranking in school history.

But instead, what happened was a bit confusing to Auburn fans. The Tigers did receive the most No. 1 votes in the latest AP Poll with 36; however, Auburn, despite its 16-1 record, came in at No. 2 in the latest AP Poll. The puzzling part was not just the ranking, but also the fact that No. 1-ranked Gonzaga, which is 14-2 this season, received just 25 No. 1 votes, 11 fewer than the Tigers.

The reason that Auburn came in at No. 2 while Gonzaga came in at No. 1 is because the Tigers may have received more first-place votes, but they also received a higher discrepancy of rankings. In other words, Pearl’s program was slotted much further down some voters’ polls than Gonzaga.

According to CollegePollTracker, Auburn received 18 second-place votes to go along with its 36 first-place votes, but it also received three third-place votes, two fourth-place votes, one sixth-place votes and one ninth-place vote. The site lists Bret Bloomquist and Marcus Fuller as the voters that placed Auburn at No. 4, Jon Wilner as the voter that placed Auburn at No. 6, and Jesse Newell as the voter that gave the Tigers a No. 9 spot, the lowest among all voters.

Gonzaga, on the other hand, had a much smaller discrepancy in voting. Gonzaga received 25 first-place votes, 34 second-place votes and had just two voters place them outside the top two — David Jablonski and Andrew Kahn. The two voters placed Gonzaga at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.

With Gonzaga slotted no lower than four (and with only one No. 4 vote in the latest AP Poll), it ended up taking the No. 1 spot in the AP Top 25, while Auburn took the No. 2 spot.

Auburn has the chance to make its case for the No. 1 spot once again this week. Should the Tigers win out — it plays at home against a bottom-dwelling Georgia team, but then again at home versus a red-hot No. 12 Kentucky team — they should end up taking home the elusive No. 1 ranking, which the school has never received in the AP Top 25.