Jay Bilas had Auburn basketball’s back as colleague Andraya Carter listed potential dark horses that can win it all during the Big Dance come late March and early April. Speaking on AU’s campus during College GameDay’s hoops debut this season, Bilas pushed back on Duke, Houston, or anyone having a similar ceiling to Bruce Pearl’s Tigers.
With the caveat Johni Broome is healthy.
“You make a fair point about the ceiling, but the problem is, Auburn’s ceiling is so darn high, other teams might not be able to reach it,” Bilas said, per On3. “Like their offensive efficiency is the best we’ve seen in the last 25 years through 18-19 games. The best in 25 years. I mean as long as Johni Broome is healthy, they’re scary. Those guards can really shoot it.”
Carter was playing devil’s advocate because she had previously proclaimed praise toward Auburn at Duke’s expense.
“I love this Duke team. I love the way they play. They have this system offensively, but to me, everything still surrounds Cooper Flagg,” Carter said, per Saturday Down South. “They have a ton of talent, but who creates for that talent? Cooper Flagg creates for everybody. He is the centerpiece for everything … more often than not, they rely on Cooper Flagg.
“I don’t know if that’s a good thing (that Duke doesn’t play through a ball-dominant guard). Even when you talk about a team being full-strength … there’s still in-game slippage, there’s still having an off night, there’s still foul trouble, and to me, Auburn is the best team because they have the most depth to withstand those in-game obstacles.”
Regardless of what anyone thinks, AU’s got plenty of conference play left to navigate before any tournament talks. That’s true for all the aforementioned teams too.
We all can see that this Auburn team is different, though. Until further notice, the Tigers stand above the rest as the nation’s lone one-loss team.