By Brant Daughtry
Winning ugly is always better than losing in any form. Auburn continues to struggle shooting the ball at home, and yet they’ve only lost one game in that venue this year. It’s a mental thing at this point, but with the short schedule they have left, if the trend continues and Auburn’s able to shoot 40% from deep in away gyms for the rest of the year, I think they take it and run.
Johni Broome is the best player in college basketball. Several others have made this argument more eloquently than I can, so I’ll leave the deeper details to them, but the constant production against top competition, along with the fact that he’s been playing through injury for most of the year, has to all count. I’ve gone on record as saying that Broome and Duke’s Cooper Flagg will split the major POTY awards. I’m hopeful that Broome ends up with more of them.
I wish I had more to say about the Georgia game. Truth is, I wasn’t able to watch most of it for the same reason I wasn’t able to get a preview done. I was in Birmingham on Friday and Saturday, celebrating my older brother’s wedding as his Best Man. It was one of the best weekends in my life. Brock and Maria, I love you both, and it was the honor of a lifetime to be a part of the big day. I really hope you’re enjoying your honeymoon and NOT reading this.
But now’s a good time to try and get back into the swing of these things. So let’s get into it.
I’ll skip the forward on Chris Beard. I’ve done it once already this year and he’s still who he is. A good coach with a good team. They have a winning record in the SEC, which is insanely tough to do, and they have some really strong wins. Since they last played Auburn a few weeks ago, they beat Kentucky, went on a streak, but have since lost back-to-back games to Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. They’re a little on the back foot right now and have fallen out of the top 25. A win over Auburn would be big foe them getting their groove back.
A thing to keep in mind with Ole Miss. They’re like Auburn in that they’re a very experienced team. They play like it too. Ole Miss values possessions in a way that has to make Beard very happy. They turn the ball over less than anyone else in college basketball, and they force turnovers at a pretty high rate. Auburn has been pretty excellent at holding onto the ball this year, but there have been moments lately where they’ve given up some possessions with careless passes. They’ll have to keep that in check or Ole Miss will turn that into easy points over and over.
Players to Watch For:
Guard Sean Pedulla, #3- Pedulla scored 29 in the last meeting with Auburn, and while that’s probably the best game he’s played this year, he’s more than capable of having a big impact. Auburn struggled to stay in front of him in the first game, and since then, it feels like Auburn’s guard, Denver Jones specifically, have locked in defensively. I think Auburn has a chance to challenge Pedulla a little better in this game, and it feels like Jones may take this matchup personally.
Forward Malik Dia, #0- Dia is the centerpiece big man for the Rebels, and is second in minutes since the start of SEC play. He grabs a solid amount of boards and is a good post defender, but can get out on the perimeter if they need him to. He’s not super big, but plays bigger than his height at 6-9.
Yeah it’s the same two guys as last time, but I feel that’s justified. Ole Miss is still a very similar team that leans on the same stuff. Kinda like Auburn in that regard. They lean on their strengths.
One area that’s not their strength that Auburn took advantage of last time, was the fact that Ole Miss doesn’t have the size inside to compete with Auburn. Malik Dia is good, but not great, and once you get past him, they really have nothing. Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell combined for 30 points and 25 rebounds, and that’s with Broome still barely back from injury and more hobbled than he is now. I don’t think there’s anything to suggest that’ll change. Auburn can get inside and really go to work in this game, and even if the three point shooting is less than perfect, there’s another path of least resistance in this game that won’t be there against stiffer front courts.
That said, Auburn really found its shot in that first matchup. The Tigers were 14-28 from deep, and a lot of those looks were wide open. They could use this game as an opportunity to try and get right at home with Alabama coming to town next week. There are a few possibilities for Auburn in this game. They just need to find the one that works.
