The No. 2 Auburn Tigers and their star forward Johni Broome made a resounding statement in an 87-69 victory over the 16th-ranked Purdue Boilermakers on Saturday. Broome, who had exited early from Auburn’s previous game with a shoulder injury, quickly erased any doubts about his health. The preseason All-American knocked down a three-pointer just over a minute into the contest, igniting the Tigers on both ends of the floor.
Broome would go on to deliver a dominant performance, racking up 21 points, corralling 20 rebounds, dishing out 6 assists and swatting 3 shots in a mere 26 minutes of action. The 6-foot-10 forward’s inside-out versatility and two-way impact overwhelmed Purdue from start to finish. Broome’s stellar outing came on the heels of earning his second AP Player of the Week honor after registering 21 points, 20 boards, 6 dimes and 3 blocks in only 26 minutes during Auburn’s 91-53 rout of Ohio State last week.
Broome proves shoulder is healthy
While Broome had been considered day-to-day after the brief injury scare against Georgia State, the big man showed no lingering effects or limitations against Purdue. His quick trigger from deep in the game’s opening minutes sent a clear message that he was operating at 100 percent.
I feel like that kind of gave me a little extra kick because I was still kind of unsure because I hadn’t been full-speed in a game. So when I hit my first 3 and seeing how the crowd reacted to it made me feel better about myself.
-Johni Broome
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, who has touted Broome as a national player of the year candidate, said he knew his star was ready to be himself after just one defensive possession.
His first rotation he got scored on a couple of times. And the great thing about it is, we actually kind of got on him and he right away responded, ‘I got you.’ With the exception of his first rotation, he played great defense the rest of the night.
-Bruce Pearl
Extra rest before next game
With Auburn now idle until a Dec. 30 matchup with Monmouth, Broome will have ample time to rest his shoulder and fine-tune his game before embarking on the heart of SEC play in January. If the Tigers hope to make a deep NCAA Tournament run come March, they will undoubtedly need their star big man operating at peak physical capacity.
Closing the gap on No. 1 Tennessee
Auburn’s decisive win over a ranked Purdue squad, coupled with Broome’s individual brilliance, could also vault the Tigers even closer to No. 1 Tennessee in the next AP Top 25 poll. Auburn had already trimmed the Volunteers’ lead to just 130 points in the latest rankings following the Tigers’ thrashing of Ohio State.
With a spotless 11-0 mark and no ranked opponents on the docket until a Jan. 7 clash with unbeaten UConn, Auburn has a golden opportunity to potentially leapfrog Tennessee if the Vols stumble. Regardless of where the Tigers settle in the next poll, it’s clear this is a championship-caliber roster more than capable of cutting down the nets if Broome is at the controls.
