When Bruce Pearl stepped down as Auburn‘s head coach after a pair of Final Four appearances and a program-record 244 wins, there was always going to be an adjustment period as his son, Steven, took the reins just weeks before the 2025-26 season.
And it showed. The Tigers had an up-and-down season as they failed to make the NCAA Tournament. But things ended on a promising note as they won the NIT, capped by a dramatic 92-86 overtime win over Tulsa in the championship game in Indianapolis.
For Auburn AD John Cohen, it’s a step in the right direction.
“I feel very good about this coaching staff,” Cohen told AL.com’s Peter Rauterkus. “They didn’t forget how to evaluate good players. They didn’t forget how to coach defense. They didn’t forget how to coach good offense. But that was a transitional year in many, many ways, both from a roster standpoint and Coach Pearl.”
The 2026-27 season will spell more changes for Pearl’s program. Filip Jovic (6.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg) is in the portal, and likely won’t be the last Auburn player to do so. Meanwhile, leading scorer Keyshawn Hall has exhausted his eligibility, as has KeShawn Murphy, who opted out of the NIT before it began as his college career came to an end. Some good news, though: Kevin Overton (14.1 ppg) will return for a final season.
Though the Tigers didn’t make the big dance, the NIT was a plus for the program, said Cohen.
“I understand that there can be critics in this world, but no matter how you slice it, our basketball team won out, and they won a championship, and they extended their season and they got really valuable experience,” he said.
John Cohen discusses Steven Pearl’s first season as Auburn head coach Saturday Down South.
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