Broome Leads Auburn to Dominant Win Over Ohio State

On the back of another strong outing from Johni Broome, Auburn cruised to a 91-53 win over the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Johni Broome took care of business again in Auburn's onslaught over Ohio State / Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

ATLANTA – In a game that was not competitive for long, the Auburn Tigers took care of business in Atlanta against a Big Ten opponent for the second year in a row.

The No. 2 Auburn Tigers (9-1) picked up a 91-53 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes (6-4) at Holliday Hoopsgiving at State Farm Arena this afternoon.

“Our guys respected them,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “We saw what they did to Texas and Rutgers and as a result, we had a great preparation.”

Per usual, Auburn benefitted from a dominant performance by star forward Johni Broome, who finished with his seventh double-double of the season. Broome wasted no time, scoring 11 points and tallying seven rebounds before the halfway point of the first half.

Broome finished the game with 21 points, 20 rebounds and six assists respectively despite not playing the final 11 minutes of the game. He led the Tigers in each of these categories. 

“Playing my hardest for my team,” Broome said. “The ball just came to me. I had a rhythm. My teammates came to me and I was able to deliver.”

An Ohio State field goal drought that lasted from the 7:49 mark to the 1:29 mark of the first half allowed Auburn to go on a 9-0 run during that time. Their 11-point lead grew to 20 and it only progressively grew from there. 

Despite their overall success throughout the game, Auburn was sloppy at times.

The Tigers had 10 fouls called on them in the first half compared to the five fouls called on the Buckeyes. Guard Miles Kelly committed three fouls in the first half while forwards Chad Baker-Mazara and Chaney Johnson each accounted for the other two.

Auburn’s dominance on the boards made up for its foul trouble as it out-rebounded Ohio State 49-28 total, 16-5 on the offensive end, leading to a 19-5 advantage for the Tigers in second-chance points, and 33-23 on the defensive end. 

Auburn shot 45.8% from the field, 43.3% from 3-point range and 85.7% from the free-throw line. 

Ohio State shot 35.3% from the field, 37.5% from 3-point range and 57.9% from the free-throw line. The Buckeyes were led in scoring by Devin Royal with 14 points, in rebounds by Sean Stewart with six and co-led in assists by Meechie Johnson and Micah Parrish with two each.

“They may be the best team in the country right now,” Ohio State coach Jake Diebler said. “They’re certainly playing as one of the best in the country. They have a lot of experience, and they made us pay when we made a mistake.”

Auburn returns to action to host Georgia State on Dec. 17 at 8 p.m. ET. on SEC Network+.

OHIO STATE POSTGAME NOTES

• For the eighth-straight game, Auburn went with the starting lineup of Denver Jones, Miles Kelly, Chad Baker-Mazara, Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell.

• With the win, Auburn is now 4-1 all-time when playing in Holiday Hoopsgiving.

• Auburn improved to 9-1 on the season with its fourth win of more than 30 points this season.

• The win marked head coach Bruce Pearl’s 209th win in his 11 seasons at Auburn, putting him four wins behind Joel Eaves for the most career coachin wins in program history.

• The Tigers scored 90 points for the fifth time this season including the third time in the last four games. During this stretch, Auburn has averaged 89.3 points per game.

• The AU defense held Ohio State to a season-low 53 points. The Buckeyes’ previous low was 59 points vs. Maryland. It was the fourth time the Tigers have held an opponent under 60 points this season including the last two games.

• Auburn’s 13 blocks are the most for the Tigers since blocking 14 shots against Texas A&M on Feb. 12, 2022.

• The Tigers’ five turnovers are the fewest since they also committed five turnovers against South Carolina in last year’s SEC Tournament.

• Auburn went 13-of-30 from long range for the second-straight game. It was the sixth time the Tigers have made double-digit 3-pointers this season including the last three games. They have shot 42.4 percent from distance in that time span. It marked the first time Auburn has had three-straight games with double-digit 3-pointers since having four-straight such games from Nov. 26-Dec. 11, 2021.

• AU went 12-of-14 from the foul line including 10-of-11 in the second half. Chad Baker-Mazara was 4-of-4 from the charity stripe and has now made 24-consecutive free throws.

• Auburn pulled down a season-best 16 offensive rebounds including seven by Johni Broome, which led to 19 second-chance points. The Tigers are averaging 15.3 offensive rebounds in the last three contests.

• The Tiers placed four players in double figures, led by Broome, who finished with 21 points and a career-high 20 rebounds to go with six assists, three blocks and one steal against the Buckeyes. • Broome became the first Auburn player to record a 20-point, 20-rebound game since Kelvin Ardister had 22 points and 20 rebounds vs. Tennessee Jan. 4, 1989. It was Broome’s 36th-straight game in double figures. He had a double-double in the first half for the third time this season with 17 points and 14 rebounds to go with four assists, one block and one steal, his 67th career double-double. It was his first career 20-20 game.

• Denver Jones scored 14 points including going 4-of-4 from long range in the first half. His four 3-pointers marked a season high. It was the eighth game in double figures on the season for Jones.

• Freshman Jahki Howard scored in double figures for the second-straight game, going for 11 points, all in the second half, against Ohio State after scoring 13 points against Richmond. He made 3-of-4 field goals including both of his 3-point attempt. Howard also went 3-of-3 from the foul line against the Buckeyes.

• Dylan Cardwell scored in double figures for the third time this season finishing with 10 points and matched his season high with eight boards and set a new season high with four blocks against Ohio State.