'I knew it was good'

AUBURN — The deflation was palpable. A sold-out Neville Arena, on the heels of an appearance from ESPN’s “College GameDay” that morning, was raucous as ever to start Auburn basketball‘s matchup with No. 6 Tennessee on Saturday.

“We’ve won some close games now, and so I think we can learn something from them,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said after the victory. “I know we can play better. I give Tennessee all the credit for how poorly we played at times. But the good thing is our guys are all feeling good knowing that we can play better, and we still were able to beat a great team.”With 30 seconds to go, and trailing by two points, Auburn got the ball in the hands of its best player.

In the game’s final 1:46, Auburn closed a four-point deficit, scoring the final six points, and securing a 53-51 victory for its seventh win over a ranked opponent this season, and its fourth one-possession triumph.But, much like what transpired on the court, those in the stands exuded the same exhaustion as those playing in a low-scoring, defense-effort between two of the SEC’s best. In the final three-plus minutes, as the Tigers trailed Tennessee by only a handful of points, everything and everyone in the arena’s confines seemed worn out. Auburn’s first SEC loss seemed imminent.HOW IT HAPPENED:No. 1 Auburn basketball survives defensive battle with No. 6 TennesseeJohni Broome, who returned from an injury-sidelined two-game absence, guided the Tigers with a game-high 16 points. But his final attempt of the night got blocked. That didn’t mean the possession stopped, however, as Broome grabbed his own miss and kicked to Miles Kelly in the corner.To beat the Volunteers took more of the same, namely some vital defensive stops, and it also needed some game-changing sparks on the offensive end.Here’s a look at how it happened.

How Auburn basketball got its go-ahead score

But it’s amazing what 30 seconds can do.Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.Kelly, who had missed five of his past six shots, still put up a contested 3 from the corner, and Chaz Lanier’s hand in his face didn’t make a difference. The Tigers went from missing a game-tying shot to sinking a go-ahead one.”As soon as he (Broome) seen me, he was like, ‘Oh, MK open!'” Kelly said. “He threw it to me. As soon as it left my hands, I knew it was good. Those are the moments that I live for.”How Auburn basketball had Tennessee’s final play dialed upPearl’s often been one to heap praise on his assistant coaches, whether it’s Mike Burgomaster, Corey Williams, Chad Prewett, or his son, Steven Pearl. But Saturday night, the elder Pearl mentioned another name.”Maddux Jeffreys is my director of basketball operations, but like many on our staff, they play multiple roles,” Pearl said.Maddux handles Auburn’s “special teams,” according to its head coach — “under-basket out-of-bounds situations, both offensively, defensively, side out-of-bound situations, offensively, defensively and pressure sets.”It’s something Jeffreys studies heavily, Pearl said, and when Tennessee got the ball back for the game’s final possession, calling a timeout with nine seconds remaining, Jeffreys was in the thick of Auburn’s huddle, with a marker-covered white board.”He had the play drawn up,” Pearl said, “and they ran exactly what we thought (they) would run.”Adam Cole is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email atacole@gannett.com or on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter,@colereporter.