LAHAINA, Hawaii – The No. 4 Auburn Tigers (7-0) cruised to a 90-76 win over the Memphis Tigers (6-1) Wednesday to win the Maui Invitational. Johni Broome was named the tournament’s most valuable player, joining greats like Glen Rice, Penny Hardaway, and Kemba Walker. The win over Memphis was Auburn’s third in as many days, also winning games against No. 5 Iowa State and No. 12 North Carolina.
The Tigers’ first contest, a comeback win over the Iowa State Cyclones, came in thrilling fashion. Trailing by as many as 18 at one point, the Tigers stormed back thanks in large part to a 16-point second half from forward Chad Baker-Mazara. Baker-Mazara played only six minutes in the first half because of a knee injury he sustained early, but he fought through the pain to lead Auburn’s second-largest comeback under head coach Bruce pearl.
The second matchup was a wire-to-wire thrashing of North Carolina. Auburn scored 24 seconds into the game and never looked back, going on to win 85-72. Every time the Tar Heels looked like they were creeping back, the Tigers stepped on the gas and widened the gap. Johni Broome’s 23 points and 19 rebounds were game highs. Six Tigers scored in double figures.
In the final against the Memphis Tigers, a team that shocked No. 2 UConn in the first round and pounced on Michigan State’s mistakes in the second, Auburn again led from start to finish. Yet another Tiger led the charge in this one, as Dylan Cardwell scored a career high 18 points to go along with six assists. Broome continued what he has done all year, grabbing another double-double with 21 points, 16 rebounds, and six assists en route to a tournament MVP award.
Across their three days in Maui, the Tiger’s depth shined. Contributions came from different players each game as their All-American continued to show why he is an early-season favorite for player of the year. Three games in three days was no problem for Bruce Pearl’s squad, a group that seemed to play better in each game, reflected in the margins of victory.
“We played tremendous defense and tremendous basketball,” Broome said after the game. Speaking to the contributions of his teammates, he added, “I trust the guys around me… if they want to keep double teaming me, that’s fine.”
Broome averaged 4.3 assists per game across the three tournament games, well above his career average. He and Cardwell have developed significantly as passers, and that opens up Auburn’s high-powered offense even more.
“We played really well,” Pearl said. “It’s been a pretty good few days for the Auburn Tigers.” Auburn will celebrate their tournament win, but another challenge awaits them a week from Wednesday. They will travel up to Durham, North Carolina to take on the No. 11 Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium as part of SEC-ACC challenge. That game Dec. 4 at 8:15 p.m. CT on ESPN and the Auburn Sports Network.
