Bruce Pearl wanted to cherish the moment Wednesday night, but the fourth-year Auburn coach knew better.
After his 10th-ranked Tigers toppled SEC blueblood Kentucky, 76-66, for just the third time since 1990, Pearl was tempted to go out on the town and celebrate the occasion with the rest of his coaching staff. Instead, Pearl went home to get some rest and wake up early Thursday morning.
As important as the win against the Wildcats was, Pearl didn't want to get caught up in the hype; he understands there's still work to be done with five games remaining on the regular-season slate for Auburn (23-3, 11-2 SEC).
"I would have really liked to have gone out for a little bit with some of my coaches and just celebrate the moment for a second, but I couldn't, because I had to get up and get ready for South Carolina," Pearl said. "It's just -- there's no time."
That's the approach Pearl is taking to the big picture as Auburn is a lock to end its NCAA Tournament drought and the Tigers are in the discussions for a potential No. 1 seed for just the second time in program history.
After taking down Kentucky at Auburn Arena, Auburn further boosted its postseason resume, while Wildcats coach John Calipari asserted that the Tigers are a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The Tigers, who were the top No. 2 seed in last weekend's top-16 reveal by the selection committee, are now up to a season-high No. 4 in the RPI and have gone a combined 11-3 in Quadrant 1 (vs. RPI 1-30 at home, RPI 1-50 at neutral site, RPI 1-75 on road) and Quadrant 2 (vs. RPI 31-75 at home, RPI 51-100 at neutral site, RPI 76-135 on road) games this season.
With each of Auburn's final five games potentially falling in Quadrant 1 or Quadrant 2, with the regular-season finale against South Carolina a potential Quadrant 3 game depending on how the Gamecocks do over the next couple weeks, the Tigers' NCAA Tournament resume could be further bolstered down the stretch. Auburn's current mark of 11-3 in those games compares well to the likes to Virginia (13-2), Xavier (15-3) and Villanova (14-3) -- all of which were unveiled as No. 1 seeds by the committee last weekend.
While it's tempting to review and compare team resumes, Pearl said he has no plans to do that over the season's final weeks largely because he can't afford to get caught up in dissecting such things.
"Whatever date the Sunday selection show it, I'll look at it then," Pearl said. "We got five games left; we can win them all, we can lose them all. It's nothing I've not said since the very beginning, and one way or the other our opponents will have a lot to do with whether we do or whether we don't. So, we're just going to find a way to get right for South Carolina, and I know that stuff just sounds like coach-talk, but until you're ever in this, you'd understand that's the only way you can do."
It's why Pearl passed up the chance to celebrate Wednesday night after the game, instead shifting his focus to Saturday's 2:30 p.m. road game at South Carolina. Such festivities will have to wait until March -- and that's perfectly fine with Pearl.
"Not complaining," Pearl said, "but my cup of coffee this morning tasted better than anything I would have had to drink last night."
Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.