No. 1 Auburn has had an almost perfect start to the 2024-25 campaign, its only loss coming on the road against No. 9 (now ranked No. 3) Duke. The Tigers have had plenty of contributors all over the floor, namely All-American big man Johni Broome. Some key pieces of the team, however, are freshman.

Tahaad Pettiford and Jahki Howard have not taken long to show what they can do. While Howard’s contributions on the court have not been as significant as Pettiford’s to this point, he has put his immense talents on display in the opportunities he has had, mainly his duking abilities.

“I think that, because they've both got pretty good basketball IQ and great basketball futures ahead of them, professionally, this senior-laden team has kind of embraced them, taught them, coached them, challenged them and recognized that we need them,” AU coach Bruce Pearl said.

Pettiford has not broken into the starting lineup yet, but is still averaging 21.1 minutes per game. The Jersey City, N.J. native is averaging 11.3 points and 2.8 assists per game while shooting 44.7% from the floor and 41.5% from 3-point range.

“Tahaad (Pettiford), certainly, is one of the best freshmen in the country coming off the bench. Like, he's probably the best freshman in the country coming off the bench, right?” Pearl said.

Howard has only appeared in 11 of Auburn’s 17 games so far this season, he missed three due to his involvement in the altercation on the team’s flight to Houston. He is averaging 6.4 points in his 13.5 minutes of action per game while shooting 54.5% from the field and 41.2% from 3-point range. Howard logged 19 minutes on the floor in Auburn’s win over Purdue.

“Jahki (Howard) would be playing a lot more basketball if it wasn't for the fact that he wasn't on a team with Miles Kelly, Denver Jones and Chad Baker-Mazara all playing his position,” Pearl said.

Auburn's veteran presence is one of the things that sets it apart at the top of college basketball. Pearl and company, however, have to feel good about the Tigers' future with Howard and Pettiford on the floor.

“They've done really well,” Pearl said. “They've gotten better. And, as a result, when we go to the bench, you know, we don't drop-off.”