The NCAA announced the 16 host sites for postseason play on Sunday night, along with the regional seedings and pairings on Monday morning, and Butch Thompson’s Auburn Tigers earned a No. 4 seed, meaning they will host a regional and a super regional if they advance.
The Tigers will take on Central Connecticut in their first game of the Auburn Regional beginning on Friday.
It marks the third time in the last four years Auburn has hosted a regional – seventh overall – and just the second time in program history it will have the possibility of hosting a super regional. The Tigers’ No. 4 seed matches the 2003 team for the program's highest-ever seeding.
“I've been tickled to death with them,” Thompson said of his squad at the SEC Tournament. “Like I said, I want to play as many games as I can with this team because they've earned it. They've earned my respect, our coaches' respect, hopefully, most of our fans' respect, that we want to see them play ball and we want to see them play good.”
The Tigers finished with a 38-18 overall record, including a 17-13 mark in SEC play. They were one of just two teams – alongside Vanderbilt – to finish the regular season with a top five RPI, KPI and SOS. Additionally, Auburn boasts the second-highest non-conference SOS among RPI top 10 teams – 14 spots higher than the next closest SEC squad.
“I feel comfortable enough that these guys will absolutely put in a good week of work for us and be ready to go,” said Thompson.
The Auburn Regional will be held Friday through Monday (if necessary) at Plainsman Park, and if the Tigers were to advance, they would match up with the winner of the Coastal Carolina Regional for the Super Regional.
Tickets will go on sale to the public starting today at 12:30 p.m. Fans can get tickets on AUBTIX.com
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