Tennessee will kick off the SEC Tournament at 3 p.m. ET, where they will take on the Auburn Tigers, who are fighting for their lives on the Bubble. Right now, ESPN has the Tigers in the "work to do" category when it comes to Selection Sunday, so Auburn is going to bring its A game against the Vols.
Digging deeper, Auburn guard Tahaad Pettiford issued a PSA for the Vols that they didn't take too kindly to what happened in the first matchup between these two squads. He said, "Some things were said in the press conference, some giggles after the game, and we've seen it."
Auburn isn't just fighting for its NCAA fate vs. the Vols.
— Trevor Denton (@trevordenton37) March 11, 2026
They're taking this matchup personally:
"Some things were said in the press conference, some giggles after the game and we've seen it."
"We're going to see who's the tougher team."
"They punked us." pic.twitter.com/YYlpcQ44jK
I guess teams will take whatever bulletin board material they can find for motivation. In reality, the giggling was completely taken out of context; Nate Ament was laughing at the podium at the comparison between DeWayne Brown II and Jaylen Carey as defensive ends, not mocking Auburn. But apparently, Auburn didn't see it that way? I respect Auburn for finding some sort of bulletin board material out of this, but making it personal does give you a little bit of fire.
Rick Barnes has a ton of respect for Steven Pearl and the Auburn program, and wouldn't let Tennessee blatantly disrespect them like that.
Context to Tennessee "laughing" postgame vs. Auburn:
— Sam Granville (@samgranvilletv) March 12, 2026
Steven Pearl referred to Jaylen Carey and DeWayne Brown II as a "couple of SEC defensive ends" leading to a follow up question which got Nate Ament to share a laugh with Brown on the podium. #Vols
Bulletin board material..? https://t.co/9L1ZWim5fE pic.twitter.com/RQAQ4bPnYo
Tennessee needs to get up for this game
Now that Auburn has motivation (whether it's legit or not), Tennessee needs to come ready to play because Auburn will be firing on all cylinders. Auburn has the March Madness bubble team motivation and the disrespect they felt from the Vols. The last time around, the Vols dominated Auburn for pretty much all 40 minutes when they met, winning 77-69. The difference in the game was Vol's physicality; they attacked the rim with confidence and made their free throws. Nate Ament scored 22, and Jaylen Carey pitched in 13 points off the bench when the Vols had no Felix Okpara. Tennesse is expected to have a full lineup, so they should be at 100%, unlike the last few games.
If Tennessee wants any chance at making a run for a No. 4 or No. 5 seed in March, it has to start today with a win over Auburn.