# 2020–21 Auburn Tigers men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Auburn Tigers men's basketball team represented Auburn University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The team's head coach is Bruce Pearl in his seventh season at Auburn. The team played their home games at Auburn Arena in Auburn, Alabama.
On November 22, 2020, the team announced a self-imposed, one year postseason ban due to former assistant coach Chuck Person's involvement in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal.

## Previous season

The 2019–20 Auburn Tigers men's basketball team finished the 2019–20 season 25–6, 12–6 in SEC play. The Tigers earned the No. 2 seed in the SEC tournament, but the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The NCAA tournament, in which Auburn was expected to participate, was also cancelled.

## Offseason
### Departures

Auburn lost seniors Thomas Collier, Samir Doughty, Will Macoy, J'Von McCormick, Anfernee McLemore, Danjel Purifoy, and Austin Wiley to graduation. In addition, freshman Isaac Okoro declared for the NBA draft and sophomore Myles Parker transferred to Alabama A&M.
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Thomas Collier | 54 | F | 6'9" | 215 | Senior | Birmingham, AL | Graduated |
| Samir Doughty | 10 | G | 6'4" | 195 | Senior | Philadelphia, PA | Graduated |
| Will Macoy | 21 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Senior | Birmingham, AL | Graduated |
| J'Von McCormick | 5 | G | 6'0" | 185 | Senior | New Orleans, LA | Graduated |
| Anfernee McLemore | 24 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Senior | Warwick, GA | Graduated |
| Isaac Okoro | 23 | F | 6'6" | 225 | Freshman | Powder Springs, GA | Declared for the NBA draft; selected 5th overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers. |
| Myles Parker | 20 | F | 6'8" | 200 | Sophomore | Madison, AL | Transferred to Alabama A&M |
| Danjel Purifoy | 3 | F | 6'7" | 230 | Senior | Centreville, AL | Graduated |
| Austin Wiley | 50 | C | 6'11" | 250 | Senior | Hoover, AL | Graduated |

### 2020 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Justin Powell SG | Prospect, KY | North Oldham (KY) | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Jun 7, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 83 ||||||
| Sharife Cooper PG | Powder Springs, GA | McEachern (GA) | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Sep 27, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 94 ||||||
| Chris Moore PF | West Memphis, AR | West Memphis (AR) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Nov 16, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| JT Thor PF | Anchorage, AK | Norcross (GA) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Apr 12, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 86 ||||||
| Dylan Cardwell C | Augusta, GA | McEachern (GA) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | May 7, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 6 247Sports: 9 ESPN: 6 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Auburn 2020 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 10, 2020. "2020 Auburn Tigers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 10, 2020. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 10, 2020. ||||||

### 2021 Recruiting class

College recruiting information (2021) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Jabari Smith Jr. PF | Tyrone, GA | Sandy Creek (GA) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Oct 9, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 40 247Sports: 71 ESPN: 9 |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Auburn 2021 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 10, 2020. "2021 Auburn Tigers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 10, 2020. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 10, 2020. |||||||

## Preseason
### SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on November 12, 2020.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Tennessee |
| 2 | Kentucky |
| 3 | LSU |
| 4 | Florida |
| 5 | Alabama |
| 6 | Arkansas |
| 7 | Auburn |
| 8 | South Carolina |
| 9 | Ole Miss |
| 10 | Missouri |
| 11 | Texas A&M |
| 12 | Mississippi State |
| 13 | Georgia |
| 14 | Vanderbilt |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 26, 2020* 3:30 pm, FS1 | vs. Saint Joseph's Fort Myers Tip-Off | W 96–91 $^{OT}$ | 1–0 | 18 – Williams | 11 – Williams | 3 – Tied | Suncoast Credit Union Arena (198) Fort Myers, FL |
| November 27, 2020* 10:00 am, FOX | vs. No. 1 Gonzaga Fort Myers Tip-Off | L 67–90 | 1–1 | 20 – Flanigan | 6 – Powell | 3 – Powell | Suncoast Credit Union Arena (288) Fort Myers, FL |
| November 30, 2020* 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | at UCF | L 55–63 | 1–2 | 18 – Johnson | 8 – Williams | 3 – Tied | Addition Financial Arena (1,944) Orlando, FL |
| December 4, 2020* 8:00 pm, SECN | South Alabama | W 90–81 | 2–2 | 26 – Powell | 6 – Cardwell | 9 – Powell | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| December 12, 2020* 4:30 pm, ESPNU | vs. Memphis Holiday Hoopsgiving | W 74–71 | 3–2 | 26 – Powell | 8 – Powell | 8 – Williams | State Farm Arena (0) Atlanta, GA |
| December 15, 2020* 6:00 pm, SECN+ | Texas Southern | W 80–63 | 4–2 | 18 – Flanigan | 7 – Tied | 6 – Powell | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| December 19, 2020* 11:00 am, SECN | Troy | W 77–41 | 5–2 | 14 – Flanigan | 6 – Tied | 8 – Powell | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| December 22, 2020* 2:00 pm, SECN | Appalachian State | W 67–53 | 6–2 | 15 – Williams | 8 – Powell | 6 – Flanigan | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| December 30, 2020 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | Arkansas | L 85–97 | 6–3 (0–1) | 21 – Johnson | 10 – Flanigan | 9 – Powell | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| January 2, 2021 2:30 pm, SECN | at Texas A&M | L 66–68 | 6–4 (0–2) | 20 – Johnson | 6 – Tied | 7 – Williams | Reed Arena (907) College Station, TX |
| January 6, 2021 8:00 pm, SECN | at Ole Miss | L 61–72 | 6–5 (0–3) | 24 – Williams | 6 – Flanigan | 5 – Flanigan | The Pavilion at Ole Miss (853) Oxford, MS |
| January 9, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN2 | Alabama Iron Bowl of Basketball | L 90–94 | 6–6 (0–4) | 26 – Cooper | 9 – Thor | 9 – Cooper | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| January 13, 2021 6:00 pm, SECN | at Georgia | W 95–77 | 7–6 (1–4) | 28 – Cooper | 8 – Thor | 12 – Cooper | Stegeman Coliseum (1,638) Athens, GA |
| January 16, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN | Kentucky | W 66–59 | 8–6 (2–4) | 21 – Flanigan | 9 – Flanigan | 8 – Cooper | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| January 20, 2021 8:00 pm, SECN | at Arkansas | L 73–75 | 8–7 (2–5) | 25 – Cooper | 5 – Thor | 4 – Cooper | Bud Walton Arena (4,400) Fayetteville, AR |
| January 23, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN2 | at South Carolina | W 109–86 | 9–7 (3–5) | 24 – Flanigan | 7 – Tied | 12 – Cooper | Colonial Life Arena (3,250) Columbia, SC |
| January 26, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 12 Missouri | W 88–82 | 10–7 (4–5) | 28 – Cooper | 8 – Cooper | 7 – Cooper | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| January 30, 2021* 3:00 pm, ESPN | at No. 2 Baylor Big 12/SEC Challenge | L 72–84 | 10–8 | 17 – Williams | 8 – Tied | 6 – Flanigan | Ferrell Center (2,350) Waco, TX |
| February 2, 2021 6:00 pm, SECN | Georgia | L 86–91 | 10–9 (4–6) | 21 – Williams | 6 – Johnson | 9 – Cooper | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| February 6, 2021 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | Ole Miss | L 84–86 $^{OT}$ | 10–10 (4–7) | 16 – Tied | 7 – Cambridge | 14 – Cooper | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| February 9, 2021 7:30 pm, SECN | at Vanderbilt | W 73–67 | 11–10 (5–7) | 19 – Tied | 10 – Williams | 7 – Cooper | Memorial Gymnasium (95) Nashville, TN |
| February 13, 2021 12:00 pm, CBS | at Kentucky | L 80–82 | 11–11 (5–8) | 24 – Thor | 9 – Thor | 8 – Cooper | Rupp Arena (3,075) Lexington, KY |
| February 20, 2021 3:00 pm, ESPN | at LSU | L 80–104 | 11–12 (5–9) | 26 – Cooper | 7 – Franklin | 5 – Flanigan | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (2,384) Baton Rouge, LA |
| February 23, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN | Florida | L 57–74 | 11–13 (5–10) | 14 – Cambridge | 9 – Flanigan | 4 – Flanigan | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| February 27, 2021 11:00 am, ESPN | No. 25 Tennessee | W 77–72 | 12–13 (6–10) | 23 – Flanigan | 7 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| March 2, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | at No. 8 Alabama Iron Bowl of Basketball | L 58–70 | 12–14 (6–11) | 13 – Williams | 9 – Flanigan | 7 – Johnson | Coleman Coliseum (2,055) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| March 6, 2021 12:00 pm, SECN | Mississippi State | W 78–71 | 13–14 (7–11) | 22 – Flanigan | 9 – Thor | 7 – Johnson | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||
    The game between Auburn and Mississippi State was postponed due to inclement weather. The game was originally scheduled for February 16.

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
| Coaches | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings