After moving up to No. 4 in the rankings, the Auburn men‘s basketball team continued its dominant tear with an 102-69 victory over North Alabama.
The Lions took their only lead of the game late in the first half before seven straight points from Johni Broome gave the Tigers a lead they didn’t relinquish.
With the Maui Invitational on deck for the Tigers, here are three takeaways from Monday’s game:
Still no action from Jahki Howard and Ja’Heim Hudson
After serving a two-game suspension for their roles in a physical altercation during a team flight, Ja’Heim Hudson and Jahki Howard saw no in-game playing time for the third straight game.
Unlike the Kent State matchup, Howard and Hudson were both dressed out and warming up with the team as if they were going to play.
Both players have not seen action since the season-opener and there’s no timetable for a return for either.
Johni Broome leads with double-double performance
Broome finished with 17 first half points hitting 8-of-10 shots from the floor. His hot streak to close out the first half sparked a 9-2 Tigers run and led to Auburn pulling away for good.
The Tigers shot 44% from 3-point territory draining 12 threes as a team. Broome got his share hitting one at the top of the key during his first half scoring surge.
Broome led all scorers with 30 points and 17 rebounds missing only four shots for the evening. His double-double was the only one recorded in the game.
Full team effort on display down the stretch
The Tigers lit up Neville arena shooting 62% from the floor as a team. Aside from Broome, four other players finished in double figures for Auburn.
Auburn totaled 25 assists and dominated with 50 points coming from inside the paint. Dylan Cardwell brought the energy with his 12 points and Chad Baker-Mazara scored the Tigers first six, finishing the night with 12 points. Miles Kelly and Denver Jones combined for 25 total points.
Despite North Alabama’s bench outscoring Auburn’s 28-23. Auburn forced 13 turnovers on the lions and scored 26 points off of them.
Now sitting at 4-0 on the year, The Tigers open the Maui Invitational with No. 5 Iowa State Monday, Nov. 25.
