AUBURN | It was like so many perfect Auburn fall Saturday nights.
A big win, a big celebration and Toomer’s getting rolled.
This one, however, was courtesy of the Tigers’ men’s basketball program, which went on the road and knocked off No. 4 Houston.
Trailing by nine points with 15:16 left, Auburn stormed back to win 74-69, scoring 46 second-half points and shooting 57 percent from the floor against one of the nation’s best defensive teams.
It was a masterclass by Bruce Pearl and his staff including assistant coaches Steven Pearl and Mike Burgomaster. It was Steven that Pearl credited with an “incredible” game plan and Burgomaster for calling every offensive play in the second half.
Their plan to feed Johni Broome the ball inside was executed to perfection by the players. He shot 8 of 10 from the floor and scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half.
It was also the coming out party for Tahaad Pettiford, who scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half. He already looks like one of the best freshmen of the Pearl era and they type of player you build a roster around.
And this is just two games into his college career.
This team looks to have the experience, talent, depth and just enough star power to be a real contender in March.
But that’s still a long way away and there are so many huge games between now and then including the toughest non-conference schedule in program history and a regular season that ends with Alabama in Neville Arena.
Pearl took over the SEC’s worst program 11 years ago and turned into one of the SEC’s and nation’s best. He did it by bringing in better players though recruiting and transfers and developing them with talented assistants.
It took a little time. Auburn won just nine conference games in Pearl’s first two years combined, finishing 13th both seasons.
I’d like to say the football program under Hugh Freeze is on the same path, but I just don’t know. It might be. It needs to be.
Because Auburn needs more of those Saturday nights.
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In today’s musical journey, we go back 60 years to the recording of the first hit single by a legendary Welsh crooner. On Nov. 11, 1964, Tom Jones recorded “It’s Not Unusual,” which reached No. 1 in two countries including the UK and peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 100. The song was written by Les Reed and recorded by Jones as a demo for British pop star Sandie Shaw. When Shaw heard the recording, however, she liked Jones’ version so much, she convinced him to sing it. Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page was credited as providing lead guitar on the recording. “It’s Not Unusual” has been covered by more than 20 other artists and helped launch Jones into an international star. He had 28 singles that charted in the U.S. from 1965-1989 including four more in the top 10 in 1965’s “What’s New Pussycat?,” 1967’s “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,” 1969’s “Without Love (There Is Nothing)” and 1971’s “She’s A Lady.” Jones had two other singles that reached the top of the UK charts in 1966’s “Green, Green Grass of Home” and a 2009 cover of “Islands in the Stream.” Some of his other popular hits include the theme song from the James Bond movie, Thunderball, a 1998 cover of Prince’s “Kiss,” which featured Art of Noise, and 1999’s “Sex Bomb.” Jones has also appeared in several movies and T.V. shows and won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in 1970 for his T.V. series, This Is Tom Jones. He also won a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1966 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2006.
Thomas John Woodward was born in Treforest, Wales in 1940 as the son of a coal miner. He sang as a child at family gatherings and weddings and was part of his school’s choir before quitting his studies at age 15. He began his career as the lead singer for Tommy Scott and the Senators in 1963. He changed his name to Tom Jones at the advice of his manager, who was inspired by the popular 1963 movie Tom Jones. He has sold over 100 million records worldwide in many different genres including pop, country, soul, R&B and gospel. He has performed in Las Vegas for a number of decades going back to 1967 and gained renewed popularity in the UK as a coach on the T.V. show, The Voice UK, starting in 2012. Jones married the former Linda Trenchard when he was 17 and the pair remained together until her death in 2016. He has recorded 35 albums with his latest coming in 2021 and remains active today at the age of 84.
