Auburn’s Bruce Pearl Criticizes Officials After Alabama Loss
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl expressed frustration with the officiating following his team’s 93-91 overtime loss to Alabama on Saturday. Despite a standout performance by player of the year contender Johni Broome, who scored 34 points on 15-of-28 shooting, Pearl was upset by how his star player was treated by the referees.
“Johni took 15 or 16 of his first shots inside the paint and didn’t get fouled once, and I have an issue with that,” Pearl said after the game. “He could be the National Player of the Year, and he took that many shots in the paint without getting a free throw. That’s tough to overcome.”
Pearl’s comments highlighted his belief that big men who operate in the paint typically draw fouls, yet Broome only attempted five free throws despite 24 shots inside the arc during his 43 minutes on the floor.
While Pearl stopped short of saying the lack of calls was the reason for Auburn’s loss, he emphasized it was a significant factor.
“You score 91, you should be good enough to win,” Pearl said. “I don’t think we defended or rebounded well enough. It doesn’t matter; they shoot 35 free throws when we play them there and 24 here. They’re always getting more free throws than us, partly because of how they drive the ball downhill. Again, that’s hard to overcome.”
In the game, Alabama shot 24 free throws, compared to Auburn’s 17, making five more than the Tigers. Over the course of both matchups this season, Alabama has outpaced Auburn by 10 free throws in total.
Rebounding Issues and SEC Tournament Outlook
More concerning for Auburn heading into postseason play was their rebounding struggles, as they were outrebounded for the second straight game. In their loss to Texas A&M, Auburn was dominated on the boards, losing 41-25, including 24 offensive rebounds. Against Alabama, Auburn was again at a rebounding disadvantage, losing 31-24, with Alabama grabbing one more offensive rebound (10-9).
Although Auburn enters the SEC Tournament as the No. 1 seed and regular-season champion, their momentum has slowed since securing the title with a win over Kentucky last week. They lost their final two regular-season games, missing out on the chance to make history with 16 SEC wins.
The Tigers will enjoy a double-bye in the SEC Tournament and won’t play again until Friday, where they will face either Ole Miss, South Carolina, or Arkansas.
NCAA Tournament Expectations
Despite the regular-season finish, Auburn’s performance in the NCAA Tournament will ultimately define their season. The Tigers have won five regular-season or conference tournament championships in the last eight years, and this team was built with the NCAA Tournament in mind.
If they make a deep run in the tournament, the losses in the final two regular-season games will be quickly forgotten. However, if they fall short, questions will arise about whether they lost focus too soon.
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