Auburn Basketball: 3 things to know about Alabama State

Auburn had to wait, but the Tigers now know their first opponent of the NCAA Tournament. It will be Auburn vs. Alabama State on Thursday afternoon at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.

This is a matchup of a 1-seed vs. a 16-seed, and the betting line reflects that. At BetMGM, Auburn is favored by 32.5 points. The Tigers are looking for a get-right game, as Bruce Pearl’s squad limped into the NCAA Tournament having dropped 3 of its last 4. Despite back-to-back losses to end the regular season and a 1-1 showing in the SEC Tournament, the NCAA Tournament selection committee rewarded the Tigers with the No. 1 overall seed after going 28-5 as regular-season conference champions.

Here are 3 things for AU fans to know about Alabama State before Thursday’s game:

Hornets started the madness

Alabama State made sure the NCAA Tournament lived up to its March Madness nickname in the first game. ASU and Saint Francis were tied 68-68 with 3.4 seconds remaining in Tuesday’s First Four game.

The Hornets gave fans the first true March Madness of the tournament, going up 70-68 in the final second. They held on for the win to advance to the field of 64.

ALABAMA STATE TAKES A LEAD IN THE FINAL SECOND#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/TktQHBcwo9

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 19, 2025

The college basketball world will be stunned if Thursday’s game comes down to the final possessions.

Familiar foes

There’s some familiarity between Auburn and Alabama State, and not just geographically speaking.

The Tigers and Hornets have played 6 times before, from 1994-2023. On Dec. 22, 2023, Auburn defeated Alabama State 82-62.

In that game, Johni Broome had a double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds. TJ Madlock, who averages 12.6 points per game in 2024-25, scored 16 against the Tigers. CJ Hines, good for 14.3 ppg this season, was limited to 4 points against AU in 2023.

Alabama State’s one win against AU came in 2013, a 78-51 victory on Dec. 28 in Montgomery.

Lots of takeaways, lots of shots

The Hornets have some interesting statlines. They have attempted 2,228 field goals on the year to just 1,938 for opponents. They shoot just 40.6%, however, to opponents’ 43.7%. It takes a high shot disparity to get ASU to 25.8 field goals per game to opponents’ 24.7. ASU averages 9 3-pointers a game, but at just 32.9%.

Alabama State’s notable strength is its turnover margin. They only commit 9.1, while averaging 13.2 takeaways. This helps for 15.4 points off turnovers to opponents’ 10.8.

If Auburn avoids being sloppy, it should not have much trouble.

Andrew Olson

Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.