It looked bad on paper. It was worse in person.
When the men’s NCAA tournament bracket came out and Midwest Region No. 9 seed Auburn was gifted with a chance to play here in Birmingham, that was an unfair disadvantage for No. 8 Iowa—and, more significant, potential second-round opponent and No. 1 seed Houston. How unfair? We found out Thursday night.
Tigers fans packed Legacy Arena, nearly blowing the roof off with noise several times as their team defeated Iowa, 83–75. It might as well have been Auburn Arena, which is just 140 miles away. This was a pure road game for the Hawkeyes.