NCAA Tournament committee errs with backyard game for Auburn

Every year fans and pundits nitpick the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s final bracket. This year, though, the committee made an egregious mistake by giving an undeserving Auburn, a No. 9 seed, what amounts to a home game in its opener.

In the Midwest Region on Thursday, the Tigers will play Iowa in Birmingham, Ala., a mere two-hour, 145-mile road trip from the Auburn campus. Auburn fans should turn out in droves for a game their team is favored by a point to win, per OddsChecker.

If Auburn beats Iowa (19-13), it will probably face No. 1 Houston (31-3), again in Birmingham, in the second round. It defeats the idea of fairness to give a lower seed what could be two home games to start the tournament. 

The move also diminishes the accomplishments of Iowa and Houston, both of which have had better seasons than Auburn. The Tigers are 20-12 overall but 4-9 in their last 13 games. 

The Auburn seeding didn't go unnoticed by veteran Sports Illustrated college reporter Pat Forde:

"Houston got some shabby treatment in the opening weekend. And so did No. 8 seed Iowa. Both of those teams were sent to Birmingham—along with No. 9 Auburn. The Tigers were given a cushy travel schedule and the chance for their home fans to gobble up tickets for games against higher-seeded teams."

The decision to put Auburn in the Midwest bracket first-round game in Birmingham wasn’t even necessary to make the brackets work. 

Auburn could have been swapped with West Virginia, the No. 9 seed in the South, to solve this issue. That region features another Alabama school, the No. 1-seeded Crimson Tide, but so what? The schools are heated rivals, and a game between them would be great for ticket sales, no matter where it is played.

Auburn also could have been swapped out with No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic in the East.

The committee didn't complete its homework on this year's bracket. The result is a reward for a team that earned none.