(This story has been updated to include new information.)
BIRMINGHAM — Auburn basketball‘s biggest hope for its matchup against No. 16 Purdue may be reality.
When All-American forward Johni Broome injured his right shoulder against Georgia State on Tuesday, it looked likely, at the very least, he would be a scratch for the second-ranked Tigers in their Saturday afternoon tilt with the Boilermakers.
But hours away from tipoff, signs are pointing to him taking the floor.
Basketball analyst Jeff Goodman of the Field of 68 podcast reported Saturday that Broome will be a game-time decision, dressing out and going through pregame warmups before a decision is made on his availability. Broome was seen taking shots in pregame warmups a little over an hour before tipoff.
Broome himself has also chimed in.
At 1:12 p.m. CST Saturday, Broome posted a somewhat cryptic message to his personal Instagram account: A photo of him with Saturday’s tipoff time as the caption, and a song title “I’m Back” as backing music.
Broome, whose right arm had been in a sling during the Tigers’ 100-59 win over Georgia State, traveled with the Tigers to Birmingham. He was seen in photos posted by the program’s X account on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, of a trip to Children’s of Alabama hospital without a sling around his arm.
The program has yet to make a statement on Broome’s availability, but it did post a caption-less photo of Broome to its X account a little over an hour before tipoff. Andy Burcham, the voice of the Tigers, also said on the Auburn Sports Network’s pregame show that Broome returned to practice yesterday and is expected to play today.
Through 10 games, Broome led the Tigers in scoring (19.7 points), rebounds (12.7), assists (3.8) and blocks (2.8). His rebounding average led the country, and his block average led the SEC.
What happened? Recapping Johni Broome’s shoulder injury
At the 17:42 mark of the first half against Georgia State, Broome rushed himself off the floor and into Auburn’s tunnel, holding his shoulder.
He didn’t return for a little more than six minutes of game time, first reappearing on the Auburn bench at the 11:34 media timeout. Broome came back to the bench wearing a hoodie and what appeared to be an ice wrap over his right shoulder.
Andy Burcham, the voice of the Tigers, said on the Auburn Sports Network that Broome was expected to be reevaluated at halftime. Shortly following Tuesday’s halftime intermission, Broome was officially ruled out for the rest of the game, per a program spokesperson. While he didn’t come back out through tunnel, Broome rejoined Auburn’s bench in the second half sans hoodie and ice, wearing a T-shirt. His right arm was in a sling.
On Wednesday, the program announced that an MRI revealed Broome would not need surgery, and Auburn coach Bruce Pearl confirmed Thursday that Broome’s shoulder wasn’t expected to sideline him long term.
“He won’t practice today, but he will travel, obviously, up there,” Pearl said. “I couldn’t even tell you status; whether it’s questionable (or) not likely. We just don’t know. But the good news — it’s not a long-term problem.”
Adam Cole is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at acole@gannett.com or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @colereporter.
