Auburn Snubbed in Latest AP Poll After Upset Win Over Gators

The Auburn Tigers will need more than an upset win in Gainesville to win over AP voters

The big win was not enough for Auburn to win voters over | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Coming into the new week, the Auburn Tigers seem to be looking better than they have at any point this season. On Saturday, Steven Pearl’s squad took down the 16th-ranked Florida Gators in a statement win, leading many to believe the Tigers would find their way back into the AP top 25 for the first time since their 28-point loss to Purdue.

The voters, however, deemed the Tigers to be undeserving at this point in time.

The week 12 AP Poll is HERE 🚨

Did your team rise or fall in rankings? pic.twitter.com/DPLyjhDGUd

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 26, 2026

What happens next for the Auburn Tigers? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Auburn Tigers news delivered to your inbox daily!

Granted, Auburn now stands at 13-7 on the season with a 4-3 conference record and has had some brutal, blowout losses to top teams, but Pearl’s squad has put on a clinic ever since the Missouri loss just under two weeks ago.

Auburn rebounded well from the loss to its rival Tigers, with Filip Jović putting up a stellar 23-point performance against South Carolina just days later. The Tigers beat the Gamecocks 71-67, beginning the push that would propel them over the Gators weeks later.

The Tigers then took down Ole Miss handily, with the final score standing 78-66. KeShaun Murphy posted a 16-point, 14-rebound double-double, Keyshawn Hall managed 19 points and Tahaad Pettiford tacked on 17 of his own on the Tigers’ trip to Oxford.

Then came the real test: an away matchup with the 16th-ranked Florida Gators. Despite entering the game as a heavy underdog to the team that ended the championship hopes of last year’s squad, the Tigers clearly weren’t planning on backing down. 

Hall started the game with a bang, posted all of the Tigers’ first 10 points and eventually accounted for 24 points and 7 rebounds on his way to leading the Tigers over the Gators, 76-67. Twenty-two of his 24 points came in the first half.

His efforts weren't enough to get his team into the Top 25. However, they were able to score him the honor of being an SEC Co-Player of the Week. Hall averaged 21.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game in Auburn’s two wins and shares Co-Player of the Week honors with Tennessee’s Nate Ament.

His efforts helped get Auburn a win in Gainesvill for the first time since 1996.

Despite a three-game in-conference winning streak, two of which came on the road, the Tigers are currently receiving the 31st-most votes of all teams and the sixth-most of teams not in the top 25. Interestingly, Florida fell just three spots to No. 19.

The Tigers will have another two chances to prove themselves to the AP voters before the next vote, as they’ll take on the Texas Longhorns in Neville Arena on Wednesday at 6 p.m. CST and the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville at 7:30 p.m. CST on Saturday.