The Auburn Tigers finished the 2004-05 season in poor fashion with a straight up record of 14-17, including a Southeastern Conference record of 4-12, which was good for a last place finish in the SEC West Division.
The Tigers did manage to out perform their on court record at the sportsbook with a mark of 14-14-1 against the spread but they finished poorly as they got the cash in just seven of their final nineteen lined games, leaving a sour taste in the mouths of gamblers, which did serve to potentially enhance their overall board value for the new season.
The Southeastern Conference was justifiably well regarded as a powerhouse football conference, arguably the best in the land, and this caused their basketball ability to often get overlooked both on the court and at the sportsbooks. The fact of the matter is however, that the SEC was an improving league that would end up placing two teams in the 2006 Final Four. For a program like Auburn that seemed to be treading water, this served as a potential problem as if they continued to fail to keep pace they would face ugly possibilities both on the hardwood and on the board.
Quiet Start Auburn Tigers
Auburn opened the 2005-06 season with an unlined 69-54 home win over Lipscomb. That was then followed by another unlined home win, this time over Gardner-Webb, 70-43.
The Tigers lined opener did not go nearly as well as they lost at Colorado State 67-77 as 7.5-point dogs. Back off the board at home against McNeese State, Auburn scored a 91-76 win before failing to get the cash at Pittsburgh in a 41-78 loss as 12.5-point dogs. That was then followed by an unlined win over Southeastern Louisiana by a score of 66-51 for a quiet start to the season of 4-2 SU and 1-2 ATS.
Brief bargains
The Tigers next hosted Temple and scored a 73-42 win as 4.5-point dogs and followed that up with a strong 67-72 loss/cover at ever-improving Texas A&M as 10-point dogs. They then took another break from the board and scored a 64-62 home win over Winthrop.
Back on the board against Jacksonville State, the Tigers scored an 87-83 win as 12.5-point overlays followed by an 80-57 home win over Southern Miss as a 15-point home chalk.
Red ink began to run Auburn Tigers
As the Tigers entered SEC play things would begin to get tougher as proven by a 50-74 blowout loss at Vanderbilt as 11.5-point dogs. That was then followed by a 52-56 home loss to arch-rival Alabama as 2-point dogs. After a 57-69 loss/cover as 18-point bargain basement dogs at eventual national champion Florida, the red ink began to run in a 52-68 loss to Arkansas, as the Tigers were 3.5-point dogs.
Problems continued for Auburn in a 62-71 loss to Kentucky as 4-point dogs followed by a 66-65 home win over Georgia as 1.5-point chalks to complete a 1-5 run against the board.
Up and down
Auburn was able to stem the tide with a 69-84 loss at Louisiana State as 16-point dogs, the first tell tale sign of their potential as bargain values. That was then followed by a 53-71 loss at Mississippi State as 3.5-point dogs. The up and down pattern continued as Auburn scored a 58-50 home win over Ole Miss as 2.5-point chalks. That was then followed by a 64-84 loss at Arkansas as 15-point dogs followed by an 89-105 blowout loss at Tennessee as 15-point dogs.
Unwanted bargains
Auburn was clearly one of the most unappealing teams in the SEC with the gambling public and this would actually serve to enhance their value as unwanted bargains beginning with a 61-65 loss to eventual Final Four qualifier LSU as 8.5-point home dogs. That was followed by a 75-71 win over Mississippi State as 3-point home chalks and then a 58-54 win at Ole Miss as 5-point dogs. Auburn got a fourth straight payoff with a 61-71 win at Alabama as 11.5-point dogs followed by a 63-67 loss to South Carolina as 3-point dogs. They then got a loss/cover in the SEC tourney vs. Vandy.