Johni Broome shows no sign of injury as strong start helping Auburn against Florida

Coming into the Final Four, there were plenty of storylines among the quartet of 1-seeds still left in the NCAA Tournament. But arguably the biggest and most important situation was the health and status of Johni Broome, the star and senior forward for the Auburn Tigers.

Throughout the season, Broome was one of the best college basketball players. The 6’10 big man averaged 18.7 ppg and 10.9 rpg, earning both SEC Player of the Year honors and a spot on the first-team All-American list. There was a time when he suffered a sprained ankle and missed a week’s worth of action, but the Tigers avoided that scare.

Then came the Elite 8 matchup, where Broome had to exit the game and go to the locker room after what looked to be a serious elbow injury. However, he was able to return to the game as Auburn defeated Michigan State to get to the Final Four.

But against Florida, Auburn would need Broome to be as close as 100% to have a shot at winning. He was probable all week and limited in practice, but as expected, Broome was available for the game. And he had as good a start as possible for the Tigers in the first few minutes, scoring six early points to keep pace with the Gators in what was aiming to be a potential shootout.

Broome has missed the last few shot attempts since the start of the game, but his defense has also been on display, blocking a couple of shot attempts. Even more important for the team is that he hasn’t been in foul trouble or on a minutes restriction. 

Auburn vs Florida has been close all game, and there’s a very good chance it'll come down to the wire. The Tigers will need Broome to help lead them to victory, and so far, injuries haven’t slowed him down.