1-seed Auburn passes tough test in 8-seed Ole Miss
NASHVILLE – The sign of a really great basketball team is that it can win in multiple ways, no matter the style or pace of a game.
Auburn again met that measuring stick test in a big way Saturday, patiently dissecting gritty Ole Miss to grind out a 62-57 victory in a SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament quarterfinal at Bridgestone Arena.
The 8-seed Rebels had lost to the 1-seed Tigers twice before earlier in the regular season, the last time by 30 points, 106-76. The time before that they surrendered 92 in a 10-point loss.
So Ole Miss came this time with a different game plan. The Rebels slowed the contest down and made it a grind-it-out sort of contest, where every possession was valued and seemed bigger than the last.
It tested the Tigers, for sure. The often full-court pressure applied by the Rebels forced Auburn into an uncharacteristic 15 turnovers that led directly to 18 points.
“We have got to do a better job of handling that pressure, taking care of the ball,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “It was almost a factor in our getting beat. But that’s what Ole Miss does. They turn you over. Then they get you in transition.
“Look, we hold Ole Miss to 57 points. I don’t know how many times they’ve scored 57 points all year. We held them to 57 points. Defensive rebounding wins championships. That’s obviously what carried the day.”
The score was tied, 46-46, after a basket by the Rebels’ Sean Pedulla with 6:49 to go. Even when Johni Broome sparked a 9-1 run immediately thereafter to extend Auburn’s lead to 56-47, the Rebels would not go quietly.
A steal and layup by Pedulla tat made it 60-55 with 1:13 left. Following an Auburn miss at the other end, Jaylen Murry drew a foul and made two free throws for Ole Miss to cut it to 60-57 with 38 seconds left.
The Rebels then attempted to play good defense and did so, but once again Broome rose to the occasion. With 11.1 seconds, he banked in a short jumper that essentially sealed it, 62-57.
Pedulla tried a long 3-pointer at the other end, but it was short and thus so was the valiant Ole Miss effort to derail the Auburn juggernaut.
Broome, of course, was at the center of the Tigers’ latest success story. The National Player of the Year candidate dominated inside in large swaths of the game on his way to 23 points on 8-of-14 field-goal shooting and 15 rebounds. Thanks mostly to Broome, the Tigers forged a decisive 38-28 edge in rebounding.
The only other Auburn player to reach double figures in scoring was Denver Jones with 13 points. He made five of his eight field-goal tries.
Ole Miss played hard and both teams were fierce on the defensive end. Four Rebels ended up in double figures in a balanced offensive effort, led by Pedulla and Dre Davis with 12 points apiece. Murray and Malik Dia added 10 each.