Harper 'has the edge' at point guard
AUBURN | Bruce Pearl likes his two point guards but Auburn’s third-year coach has to choose a starter and right now, it looks like that will be Jared Harper.
The true freshman has been competing daily with graduate transfer Ronnie Johnson.
“I’ve said that Jared Harper is worth the price of admission. I believe that,” Pearl said. “He is a very a smart player. And what an asset for Jared to have a guy like Ronnie, who has been there and done that in high school in Indianapolis, at Purdue and at Houston.
“Jared has the edge right now, but they’ll both play. They’re both fast and they’re both quick and they both can go by and they’re both pretty good defenders, so not a lot changes. They can both shoot the perimeter shot, so there’s not a lot that changes when one comes out and the other one comes in. But you can see how special Jared is and how special he’s going to be. And Ronnie is just really, really tough and really solid. He takes good care of the basketball.”
Johnson said it’s important to him to fill a key leadership role on the team in addition to his duties at point guard.
“I just want to coach these guys and make them give it their all. I want them to play like it’s their last year too,” Johnson said.
Johnson averaged 9.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game at Houston last season.
“Ronnie certainly didn’t come here to share the position, but at the same time, Ronnie knows what being a good teammate is all about,” Pearl said. “I see him, whether he starts or comes off the bench, being a great teammate. And I think the point is, together, our point guard play is going to be improved.”
Pearl said he will have 10 players in the rotation against Montevallo. The projected starting lineup includes Harper, shooting guard T.J. Dunans, wing guard Mustapha Heron, forward Danjel Purifoy and center Horace Spencer. Coming off the bench will be Johnson, Bryce Brown, TJ Lang, Anfernee McLemore and LaRon Smith.
“We played nine (in a scrimmage game) up at Chattanooga because TJ Lang was out last week with back spasms and did not travel with us,” Pearl said. “He's back this week, but we will play 10 guys and I think our strength is our depth in the sense that when we do go to the bench, I think we drop off a little bit, but we bring in different dimensions.
“We don't drop off a lot, so I think there will continue to be (competition) for playing time, for roles, for starting positions as we continue to progress. We can withstand injury or foul trouble. I'm not wishing for any more injuries or foul trouble -- we had enough of that last year -- but I feel very, very confident the 10 guys that I have out there are going to be able to play effectively.”
Johnson, the team’s most experienced player, has set a goal of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time in his career. He likes the makeup of this year’s team as they prepare to host Montevallo in an exhibition game Friday at 8:30 p.m. CT.
“I think we’re really good,” Johnson said. “I think in order to be really good we have to just continue to play together and continue to learn in terms of strengths and weaknesses. I think they sky is the limit when everyone gets playing together more.”