The Auburn women’s basketball team has proven plenty over the last few weeks.

The Tigers have bounced back from a rough start to Southeastern Conference play, winning five of their last six games. AU (18-7, 6-4 SEC) is over .500 in conference play for the first time under fourth-year head coach Nell Fortner.

And the Tigers are closing in on their first NCAA Tournament bid under Fortner.

“I feel good about where we are right now,” Fortner said. “I think this team is really hungry and focused on what could happen for us. They’re hungry to have a great seed in the SEC Tournament and hungry to get to the NCAA Tournament.

“We’re at an exciting point in the season.”

But a few challenges remain.

First and foremost, AU hasn’t quite clinched an NCAA tourney berth. Auburn likely needs to win two of its remaining four regular-season SEC games to assure itself of a postseason spot.

Today’s game at Ole Miss offers Auburn a chance to take another step toward that goal. A win tonight would also help the Tigers improve their spotty SEC road record.

AU is 2-3 on the road in the SEC, including a blowout at No. 3 Tennessee and upsets at Kentucky and Florida. The Tigers’ only SEC road wins are against the league’s cellar-dwellers: Last-place Alabama and 11th-place Arkansas.

Ole Miss (10-14, 4-7 SEC) is a tougher task. The Rebels aren’t an SEC contender this season, but they play like one at home.

Ole Miss is 9-2 this season on its home court, Tad Smith Coliseum in Oxford, Miss. In contrast, the Rebels are 1-12 away from home.

Fortner knows today’s game — and Sunday’s game at Georgia — is an important test.

“Road wins seem to really build the confidence of your players,” Fortner said. “They know how tough it is to win on the road.

“When you can consistently go on the road and win, it shows a lot of great heart and fight and focus in your team. We are definitely looking to pick up more road wins as we progress.”

Today’s game begins at 8 p.m. and will be televised on Fox Sports Net (Channel 26 in Lee County).

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