Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl expressed frustration with the officiating following his team’s 93-91 overtime loss to Alabama on Saturday. Despite a dominant performance from Johni Broome, who scored 34 points on 15-of-28 shooting, Pearl was particularly upset about the lack of foul calls on his star forward’s attempts in the paint.
Broome took 15 or 16 of his initial shots near the basket but did not draw a single foul, which Pearl found problematic. He pointed out that a player of Broome’s caliber, especially one who plays in the post, typically attracts more contact and should be getting to the free-throw line more often. Although Broome attempted 24 shots inside the arc, he only took five free throws over 43 minutes of play.
While Pearl did not directly blame the officiating for the loss, he suggested that the disparity in free throws contributed to Auburn’s struggles. He noted that Auburn scored 91 points, which should have been enough to secure a win, but the team’s defensive lapses and rebounding deficiencies hurt them. Additionally, he emphasized that Alabama consistently shoots more free throws than Auburn, regardless of where the game is played. In the two matchups this season, Alabama had a 10-attempt advantage from the free-throw line, taking 24 in this game compared to Auburn’s 17.
Another major concern for Auburn heading into postseason play is rebounding. The Tigers were outworked on the boards for the second consecutive game. In their previous loss to Texas A&M, they were dominated 41-25 in total rebounds, including surrendering 24 offensive rebounds. Against Alabama, they had a seven-rebound deficit (31-24), with Alabama also grabbing one more offensive rebound (10-9).
Despite these setbacks, Auburn enters the SEC Tournament as the No. 1 seed after clinching the regular-season championship. However, after securing the title with a win over Kentucky, the Tigers have dropped their final two games, missing an opportunity to make history with a 16-win conference season.
Auburn benefits from a double-bye in the SEC Tournament and will not play until Friday, facing the winner of a matchup between Ole Miss, South Carolina, and Arkansas. However, the ultimate measure of this team’s success will be its performance in the NCAA Tournament. Auburn has won five regular-season or conference tournament championships in the past eight years, but this year’s squad was built for a deep March Madness run. If they succeed in the tournament, these late-season losses will be forgotten. However, if they falter, questions will arise about whether the team lost momentum at the wrong time.
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