No. 2 Auburn will face Georgia State on Tuesday, December 17, 2024 (12/17/2024) at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama.

How to watch: Fans can watch the game with a subscription to ESPN+.

Here’s what you need to know:

What: Men’s college basketball

WHO: Auburn vs. Georgia State

When: Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Where: Neville Arena

Time: 8pm ET

TV: N/A

Live stream: ESPN+

AP story:

Tennessee remained No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the second straight week, although No. 2 Auburn closed the gap as the top five in the men’s college basketball poll remained unchanged Monday.

The Volunteers received 50 first-place votes from the national media panel after wins over Miami and Illinois moved coach Rick Barnes’ program to 10-0 for just the fifth time in school history. Auburn received nine first-place votes last week and had 12 total. Iowa State, Duke and Kentucky rounded out the top five.

Tennessee is among five undefeated teams in Division I men’s basketball and one of three from the Southeastern Conference, joining No. 7 Florida (10-0) and No. 14 Oklahoma (10-0). Drake (9-0) and Utah State (10-0) also enter this week undefeated.

“We know we need to get better and more consistent in many areas when it comes to watching film,” Barnes said Monday. “It’s everyone. Coaches get better, players get better. When you’re in December, you have to be authentic. Look at the film and realize that we have done this or that, but we still have a long way to go to get where we want to be.”

Auburn improved to 9-1 with its 91-53 win over Ohio State in Atlanta. Johni Broome showed the way with 21 points and 20 rebounds in the Tigers’ first 20-20 game in 35 years, then raced back to Auburn for his graduation Saturday night.

“They may be the best team in the country right now,” Ohio State coach Jake Diebler said. “They have a lot of experience and made us pay when we made a mistake.”

The SEC continued to dominate the top 25, with the Vols and Tigers joined by Kentucky, No. 6 Alabama and No. 7 Florida, giving the league five of the top seven. Kansas moved up two spots to No. 8, while Marquette and Oregon rounded out the top 10.

Two-time defending champion UConn moved up seven spots to No. 11 after defeating then-No. 8 Gonzaga. The Huskies were followed by Texas A&M, the Bulldogs, the Sooners and Houston, which remained at No. 15.

Purdue fell five spots to No. 16 after the loss to the Aggies, followed by Ole Miss, UCLA, Cincinnati and Michigan State. Dayton entered the poll for the first time this season at No. 22, just behind Memphis, which was coming off its win over Clemson. Wisconsin was eliminated after losing to Illinois, while Mississippi State was eliminated after a narrow win over McNeese State.

San Diego State, Michigan and Clemson round out the top 25.

Medium-sized surveillance

Drake appeared on 11 ballots after an easy win over St. Ambrose kept first-year coach Ben McCollum’s club undefeated. Utah State was on 10 ballots after defeating South Florida, giving the Aggies their best start in school history.

“I’ve said all along that you can consistently win at a high level here and we’ve proven that, right? Year in and year out,” Utah State coach Jarrod Calhoun said. “We never talk about making history. This was never discussed all week. … It’s about getting better every day. It’s about enjoying the process.”

Rising and falling

UConn made the biggest jump this week, climbing seven spots to No. 11 after beating Gonzaga. UCLA climbed six spots to No. 18 after beating Arizona for its eighth straight win, while Texas A&M rose five spots to No. 12 advanced.

Michigan fell 10 spots to No. 24 after blowing its halftime lead in an 89-87 loss to Arkansas in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden. Clemson fell nine spots to No. 25, while Gonzaga and Purdue each fell five spots.

In and out

Memphis spent a week at No. 16 earlier this year before losing to Arkansas State. They returned while Dayton made its season debut at the expense of Wisconsin and Mississippi State, who received the most votes outside the top 25.

Conference clock

The SEC has eight teams in the top 25, along with the top three outside the poll in Mississippi State, Arkansas and Missouri. The Big Ten has five, the Big 12 has four and the ACC and Big East have two each. Nine leagues had a ranked team.

Thank you for trusting us to provide you with the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription. Cayden Steele can be reached at [email protected]