Your inbox approves 🥇 On sale now 🥇 🏈's best, via 📧 Chasing Gold 🥇
Auburn Tigers

Making the case for Auburn to win national title at Final Four

When Auburn is hitting three-pointers – firing up tons of them, making them in bunches – the Tigers are nearly unstoppable. Or so goes the narrative, which is embraced even by the Tigers themselves.

“We live by the three,” junior forward Danjel Purifoy said, “and we die by it.”

Except it’s not necessarily correct. Yes, Auburn shot and made more three-pointers this season than any other team; with 445, the Tigers are within spitting distance of breaking the NCAA record set last year by Villanova (464). And sure, they see almost any three-pointer, almost any time (every time?) as a good one (“There is no such thing as a bad three,” junior guard Jared Harper said.) Without question, the longball has been the biggest weapon all season, and especially during a 12-game winning streak.

Auburn celebrates after beating Kentucky to earn a trip to the 2019 Final Four.

But consider this: The Tigers beat Kentucky in the Midwest Regional final by going away from their favorite shot. They average 30 attempts and 11.4 makes. But when the long, athletic Wildcats successfully closed down the perimeter, Auburn did not force many (7 of 23). Instead, guards Bryce Brown and Harper made them pay inside the arc. Brown drove for mid-range pull-ups. Harper drove all the way to the basket. Together, they propelled Auburn to victory.

“We’re not only a three-point shooting team,” Brown said. “We’re a dominant three-point shooting team, but we do other things, too.”

MAKING THE CASE: Auburn | Michigan State | Texas Tech | Virginia

MOTIVATIONAL LOSS:How Virginia embraced defeat to reach Final Four

TIGERS TESTED:Auburn must respond to serious injury to teammate

TIME FOR TITLE:Tom Izzo is overdue for second title at Michigan State

One thing did not change. Auburn’s relentless, aggressive defense – spearheaded by Brown and Harper – sped up the Wildcats. Even when opponents aren’t turning the ball over (Auburn averages nine steals and 22 points off turnovers), the Tigers’ defense routinely denies them a comfort zone.

The task is more difficult against Virginia’s defense, which is predicated on stopping the three-pointer while at the same time packing the middle – a nearly impossible task the Cavaliers are really, really good at accomplishing – but Auburn has shown versatility.

Auburn will play without junior forward Chuma Okeke, who suffered a torn ACL in the Sweet 16 victory against North Carolina. The Tigers managed against Kentucky in the Midwest Region final, and if there’s one area in which the roster has depth, it’s there. But Okeke is Auburn’s best all-around player (example: he had 20 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and a block before he was injured with eight minutes left against the Tar Heels). The Tigers’ offensive efficiency was seven points per 100 possessions higher with Okeke on the floor. His absence will be felt.

As a No. 5 seed, and riding that long winning streak, Auburn is the closest thing this Final Four has to a Cinderella. But it also means the Tigers are the underdogs against No. 1 Virginia and likely against either Michigan State or Texas Tech, too. That’s especially true after Okeke’s injury. And it seems to be fine with the Tigers.

“People are going to doubt us now because we don’t have Chuma,” Brown said after the North Carolina game. “You know, when people doubt us, that’s when I feel like we’re at our best. … Being underdogs, I have no problem with that.”

 

Featured Weekly Ad