Injury Report: Pettiford Expected to Play in Auburn Tigers Season Opener

Bruce Pearl and the Tigers will have their incoming talent available for the season opener against Vermont

The Auburn Tigers should have their top recruits available to start the season / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

The 2024-25 college basketball season has arrived. The No. 11 Auburn Tigers are set to begin the season against the Vermont Catamounts at home inside Neville Arena on Wednesday night.

The Tigers took down Furman 83-62 on the road in Greenville, S.C. on Oct. 27 and picked up a 102-70 win over Florida Atlantic at home on Friday night.

The Tigers were not at full strength against Furman. Miles Kelly, a guard who transferred from Georgia Tech to Auburn during the offseason, was not available due to an illness.

Kelly returned for the exhibition against Florida Atlantic. In 20 minutes of action, he co-led Auburn in scoring with 15 points alongside Johni Broome and also recorded five rebounds and one assist. He shot 4-of-8 (50%) from the field, 3-of-7 (42.8%) from 3-point range and 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.

However, another member of the Tigers went down against Florida Atlantic. Freshman guard Tahaad Pettiford left the game with an ankle injury at the midway point of the second half.

Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl confirmed that Pettiford should be able to go for Auburn’s season opener against Vermont.

“He (Pettiford) should be fine,” Pearl said. “He should be fine, just tweaked his ankle I think.”

In 16 minutes on the floor against Florida Atlantic, Pettiford scored 12 points, making him one of six Tigers to post double-figures, and had three rebounds, five assists and one steal. He shot 3-of-7 from the field, 2-of-5 from beyond the arc and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line.

Both of Auburn’s freshmen, Pettiford and forward Jahki Howard, made an impact in both of Auburn’s exhibitions. 

As a recruit, Pettiford was a five-star prospect according to 247Sports. The 6-foot-1 native of Jersey City, N.J., who attended Hudson Catholic High School (N.J.), was the No. 29 player in the class of 2024, the No. 2 point guard and the No. 3 player from New Jersey.

Auburn and Vermont are set to tip off at 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday. The television broadcast can be found on SEC Network.