The No. 1 Tigers took down the Rebels in Neville Arena Wednesday earning their fifth win in a row. Auburn scored a season high 106 points with Broome and Baker-Mazara leading the charge.
Broome joined the 2500 career points club after scoring 24 points. He also had nine rebounds and four assists in the outing.
“All glory to God,” Broome said. “You know, He's blessed me to be able to make an impact since my freshman year. He gave me this platform that I have now. He's kept me healthy enough to achieve that goal.”
Also helping reach the season high was Baker-Mazara, who scored 22 and shot 4-5 from three. Baker-Mazara led the charge early scoring eight points to go up 29-9.
Baker-Mazara was not able to practice Tuesday before the game, but that did not hold him back when it came time to play. Head coach Bruce Pearl liked the way he battled especially early on in the contest.
“We played so well offensively,” Head coach Bruce Pearl said. “Shot it so well, shared it so well. I just think that the pieces, there’s just some really special pieces. Chad Baker gets off to a phenomenal start. Wasn’t able to practice yesterday because he had a stomach virus. And he’s on IV’s last night and this morning. And battled back and played great.”
Pearl also had high praise for the way the duo played tonight.
“Those are two of our best players, for sure,” Pearl said referring to Broome and Baker-Mazara. “They both played great tonight and they were both really, really efficient. I thought our transition defense left a lot to be desired.”
The Tigers went up 29-9 early in the contest, but that did not stop Ole Miss Head coach Chris Beard’s squad from fighting back. The Rebels brought it back within 10 at the half making it 50-40.
Coach Pearl also had praise for Beard and the way his team fought in the matchup.
“I've got such respect for Coach Beard and his staff that I knew they weren't going to go away,” Pearl said. “And I knew they'd have a really good game plan. They changed some things up from the first time we guarded them.”
Auburn and Ole Miss would go on to trade shots for the first three minutes of the second half. Chaney Johnson would eventually lead Auburn to 14-point lead scoring seven points in less than two minutes.
“Well, you know, all glory to God,” Johnson said about his performance. “Without Him, I wouldn't be the player I am today. Honestly, they were just passing me the ball in the right spots. I have great teammates who always know where to find me. That's all it is. Finding him in right spots.”
The Tigers played team ball in the final ten minutes, keeping a significant lead throughout. Denver Jones and Myles Kelly also finished with double digits, scoring 13 apiece. A great team effort led the Tigers to a huge win over a great Ole Miss team.
“We bring energy every game,” Johnson said. “I feel like we're the best country at controlling what we can control. Just play with high energy and high effort, good things will happen. When you've got a team full of guys that play with high energy, high effort, good things will happen all the time.”
The Tigers improved to 26-2 on the season and will continue its tough remaining schedule against No. 17 Kentucky on Saturday Mar. 1 at Noon CST. The game will be broadcast on ABC.
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Tyler Cox is a sophomore from Atlanta majoring in journalism. He joined The Plainsman in fall 2023.
