Maui Champs: Broome, Cardwell lead No. 4 Auburn over Memphis in title game

LAHAINA, Hawaii – Behind big men Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell, No. 4 Auburn overpowered Memphis to win the Maui Invitational championship game 90-76 Wednesday at Lahaina Civic Center.

“Our fans traveled. Our kids were excited about playing every single game,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “We dominated and we controlled the game. Big win for our program. Auburn’s name is going to be on this building forever. We came here to make history and I’m really proud of our club.”

The Auburn senior post players combined for 39 points, 19 rebounds and 12 assists.

“Incredible,” Pearl said.  “They’re unselfish and they make the extra pass. Both my big men knocked down 3s tonight. When you have that kind of spacing and you have to guard those guys on the perimeter, it makes everything you run offensively all that much better.”

Broome, the tournament MVP, recorded a second straight double-double by halftime, finishing with 21 points, 16 rebounds, six assists and four blocked shots.

“I trust the guys around me,” Broome said. “I don’t mind having 10 assists. If they want to keep double teaming me, that’s fine.”

Broome dominated in Maui, playing 101 minutes in fewer than 48 hours, registering three triple doubles, averaging 21.7 points, 15 rebounds, 4.3 assists and three blocks per tournament game.

“We played tremendous defense and tremendous basketball against great opponents,” Broome said. “Our word this year was sacrifice, taking care of your body, not being up too late, getting to things on time. All those things help win championships.  These last two days, we’ve shown how committed we are to each other because we see how good we can be.”

Cardwell enjoyed a career day scoring 18 points on 8-for-8 shooting.

“Before the game, Johni said, ‘When they double, just go to the basket and I’ll find you,’” Cardwell said. “Johni found me every single time. It’s so great having a teammate as selfless as him. He’s a great teammate, high-IQ guy. I’m grateful for the way our relationship has blossomed over the three years we’ve been together.”

Cardwell’s perfect shooting day included a 3-pointer, along with three rebounds and six assists. 

“I’m working on that part of my game,” Cardwell said of his perimeter shot. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to showcase what I can do. I’m blessed to be part of this team and be a part of the Auburn family.”

For the second straight day, Auburn never trailed, opening with a 9-0 run and leading by double digits for the game’s final 28 minutes and 38 seconds.  The orange and blue Tigers are the third SEC team to win the Maui Invitational, the first since Kentucky in 1993. 

“We played really well,” Pearl said. “We put a really good foot forward. We’re going to celebrate this for a couple days. I’m going to give the guys Friday and Saturday off. It’s been a pretty good few days for the Auburn Tigers.”

Chad Baker-Mazara scored 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting, adding five assists. Denver Jones added 11 points. Auburn shot 56.7 percent and had 23 assists with only nine turnovers. 

Another high-profile opponent awaits next Wednesday when Auburn (7-0) visits No. 11 Duke at 8:15 p.m. CT on ESPN and the Auburn Sports Network from Durham, North Carolina.

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

POSTGAME NOTES

• Auburn wins the first Maui Invitational title in program history and joins Vanderbilt (1986) and Kentucky (1993) as the only SEC programs to win the title. It was Auburn’s fourth in-season tournament title in the last six seasons, including three straight, after winning the Legends Classic in both 2019 and 2023 and the Cancun Challenge in 2022.
• The Tigers are 5-1 in two all-time appearances in the Maui Invitational after posting a 2-1 record in the 2018 event. 
• With the win, Auburn now leads 3-1 in the all-time series with Memphis (including 2-1 under head coach Bruce Pearl).
• For the fifth-straight game, Auburn went with the starting lineup of Denver Jones, Miles Kelly, Chad Baker-Mazara, Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell.
• Auburn is off to a 7-0 start for the third time under head coach Bruce Pearl after starting 15-0 in 2019-20 and 8-0 in 2022-23.
• The win marked Coach Pearl’s 207th victory in his 11 seasons at Auburn, putting him six wins behind Joel Eaves, who won 213 games 14 seasons as the Tigers’ head coach, for the most career coaching wins in program history.  
• Auburn shot 56.7 percent (34-of-60) including 64.0 percent (16-of-25) in the second half. It marked the fourth time the Tigers have shot over 50 percent this season.
• The Tigers tied a season high with 11 offensive rebounds for a season-high 18 second-chance points against Memphis.
• Auburn scored 20 points off 11 Memphis turnovers and 44 points in the paint, which was the third time the Tigers have scored at least 40 paint points including a season-high 50 points in the paint against North Alabama.
• The Tigers had four players score in double figures, led by Johni Broome, who recorded his fifth straight double-double with 21 points and 16 rebounds to go with six assists, four blocks and a steal versus Memphis. Broome secured his 65th career double-double in the first half, making it the second-straight game he has posted a double-double in the first half with 15 points and 11 rebounds to go with five assists, three blocks and a steal before halftime.
• Broome became the first Auburn player to record five-straight double-doubles since Jeff Moore in 1988. He moved past Charles Barkley for 28th on Auburn’s career scoring list finishing the game with 1,188 points. Broome averaged 21.7 points, 15.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.0 blocks per game to bring home 2024 Maui Invitational MVP honors.  
• Dylan Cardwell set new career highs with 18 points on 8-of-8 field goals including one 3-pointer and six assists against Memphis. He added three rebounds and one steal in the win. Today was Cardwell’s 135th career game, which surpassed Frankie Sullivan for second in program history.
• Chad Baker-Mazara scored 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting including 1-of-2 from long range against Memphis. He also went 3-of-3 from the foul line for his fifth-straight game in double figures and sixth of the season. Baker-Mazara finished the day with five assists and three rebounds. He averaged 15.3 points on 51.7 percent shooting, including six 3-pointers, 4.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in three Maui Invitational games.
• Denver Jones chipped in 11 points, including 4-of-4 from the foul line, to go with three rebounds and two assists for his sixth game in double figures this season including five straight. Jones averaged 11.0 points in three Maui Invitational games.