No. 1 Auburn overcame a sloppy performance against Georiga en route to its 82-70 victory on Saturday afternoon. Georgia had a week off heading into the game, giving coach Mike White an opportunity to try something different.
The Bulldogs came out in a 3-2 zone, a defensive formation that they have not used much this season. The Tigers were not prepared for the formation, making it difficult for them to get going offensively.
“Great, great, great game-planning,” AU coach Bruce Pearl said. “They played a little 3-2 zone, 1-2-2 zone. Hadn’t played it hardly all year. I told Coach White I thought that was a great call because it caught us off guard and we managed to find a few things that we could do that was good to score 80 points.”
This surprise made Auburn’s halftime adjustments crucial to finding a way to win. The Tigers were successful, putting nearly twice as many points on the board in the second half.
Pearl is confident in the Tigers’ ability to perform against a zone defense when they are prepared to face one.
“We made some good adjustments in the second half. But that was a good move,” Pearl said. “We’re great against zones, we just didn’t prepare at all for it.”
The adjustments Auburn made allowed Johni Broome to take over the game, something that will almost always equate to success for the Tigers.
Broome led the game in points and rebounds with 31 and 14 respectively. He also added four assists and two blocks while shooting 11-of-18 from the field and 2-of-3 from 3-point range.
“That’s why he’s player of the year,” Pearl said. “Unbelievable poise. He plays at a great pace offensively and the fact that he’s patient, calculating and the fact that he attacked the rim like he did in this game so much. I mean, that was the biggest difference at the end of the day. We had 4 and they didn’t. And 4 played pretty good tonight.”
Broome credited his teammates and coaches for putting him in a position to succeed in the second half. The adjustments Auburn made helped the National Player of the Year candidate find his stride.
“My teammates got me looks,” Broome said. “My coaches got me in the right spots. Then, you know, God just let the ball go through the basket. Nothing crazy. I'm just, you know, trying to get back to my normal self again.”
The ability to adjust to what an opposing team throws at you is an important aspect for a great team to have. Auburn showed its ability to do that.
The Tigers return to action on Wednesday when they host No. 24 Ole Miss. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT and ESPN2 will carry the broadcast.
