AUBURN, Ala. – After nearly three weeks on the road, No. 2 Auburn returns to Neville Arena Sunday for the first time since Nov. 18.
“A real tough stretch for us, travel-wise,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said, “but it doesn’t affect our fans.”
Pearl praised Auburn fans for traveling to the Tigers’ game Wednesday at Duke, a show of support so strong that it elicited a scolding email from a Duke administrator to Blue Devils fans whose season tickets ended up in the hands of Auburn fans.
“We had close to a thousand people at Cameron Indoor Stadium,” Pearl said. “When we got off to a great start, you really couldn’t tell the difference between whether we were on the road or at home. That definitely elevated our play.”
It’s Bruce, brunch and basketball Sunday morning when the Tigers tip off against Richmond at 11 a.m. CT.
“Last year’s Atlantic Ten champion,” Pearl noted of the Spiders. “Coach Mooney didn’t invent the five-out Princeton stuff, but he probably runs it as well as anybody. It’s a great game for us because nobody will run five-out better than Richmond.”
The Auburn-Richmond game will be the first part of a basketball doubleheader at Neville Arena. Auburn’s women’s team hosts UAB at 2 p.m. CT.
“I want to encourage our fans to stay for the second game,” said Pearl, congratulating coach Johnnie Harris and her team for their road win over Virginia Thursday in the SEC/ACC Challenge. “People who are supporting men’s basketball can stay and get a treat of watching our women play, so I hope everybody will do that.”
At halftime of the men’s game, Auburn will honor former head coach and recently retired analyst Sonny Smith, whom Pearl credited for helping Auburn basketball fans remain patient during Pearl’s early seasons on the Plains as he turned the program into a consistent winner.
“He never panicked. He never jumped off the wagon,” Pearl said of the beloved broadcaster. “It really wasn’t until year three that we started to be competitive in the league and then we won it in year four.”
They won a title in Maui. They’ve beaten three teams currently ranked in the top 20, and they battled No. 9 Duke for 40 minutes in one of college basketball’s toughest venues for visitors.
Now they’re back home at last. SEC Network will televise Sunday’s game while Andy Burcham and Randall Dickey will bring the action to listeners on the Auburn Sports Network.
“It’s going to be a grind,” Pearl said, looking ahead to the start of SEC play in four weeks. “That’s one of the things about this non-conference schedule, it’s been a grind. It just doesn’t get any easier on Sunday bringing in last year’s A-Ten champ. They’ve got some pieces to replace for sure, but they’ve got a culture of winning there.”
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer