'Ready for this moment': J'Von McCormick leads Auburn to second round

'Ready for this moment': J'Von McCormick leads Auburn to second round'Ready for this moment': J'Von McCormick leads Auburn to second round
Wade Rackley

SALT LAKE CITY – Addressing his team after Auburn's 78-77 win Saturday over New Mexico State, Bruce Pearl paused in the middle of his talk to praise J'Von McCormick.

"How about that sucker right there," said the Auburn coach, pointing to McCormick in the corner of Auburn's locker room. "J'Von said, 'I want to be on the best team I possibly can. I'll push those kids as hard as I can. I'll be ready when my opportunity presents itself.' He wasn't afraid."

While Pearl continued talking to the team, Bryce Brown got up and hugged McCormick.

Minutes earlier, Auburn's backup point guard, making his NCAA Tournament debut, helped the Tigers advance to the second round by scoring 10 of his career-high 16 points in the second half.

"Having that SEC experience, a year under your belt, and then you go out here and play against New Mexico State, he's ready for that," Brown said. "He's ready for this moment. He's been doing it all SEC play.

"I just have to tip my hat off to J'Von. He was one of the most important players that we had for this game, how he just stepped up. He made plays, made big shots. J'Von was very important for us in this game."

McCormick's biggest shot came with 2:13 to play, a baseline driving layup and free throw that put Auburn up 73-65 that would be the Tigers' final field goal.

"I knew they couldn't stay in front of me. He closed out pretty hard, so I just took him baseline and scored," said McCormick, who added two free throws with 12 seconds left to give Auburn a 77-73 lead. "It's my first March Madness game. I got the first one under my belt. I needed to stay ready and stay right."

In the second half, McCormick was 3-for-3 from the field, including a 3-pointer, and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line, points Auburn needed to survive and advance to Saturday's matchup with 4th-seeded Kansas.

"J'Von really stepped up," said sophomore Chuma Okeke, who scored 13 points and led Auburn with five rebounds. "He made some big plays on offense and on the defensive end. I feel like we don't really win that game with J'Von. That's how much of an impact he was in this game."

McCormick signed with Auburn last summer after two seasons at Lee College in Texas, knowing he would be coming off the bench to back up Jared Harper.

"I think if I would have committed to another team, we probably wouldn't have been able to make it this far," McCormick said. "That's why I chose Auburn."

"J'Von was not a heavily recruited player," Pearl said in the postgame media session after McCormick and Harper spoke. "Most of our guys were three-stars. So we've developed a confidence and a trust in one another and our depth as the season has progressed."

For a team that had just won an NCAA Tournament game, Auburn's locker room was relatively subdued, the result of barely preserving a late lead.

A sense of relief, or rejoicing?

"Joy, really, because some people didn't play good," McCormick said. "And we get another day so they can play better on Saturday."

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer