Auburn men’s basketball makes their sixth Sweet 16 appearance in Atlanta as they look to keep their historic run alive. The Tigers face the Michigan Wolverines who recently won the Big 10 Tournament earlier this month.
The Wolverines are coming off wins over UC-San Diego and Texas A&M, while Auburn defeated Alabama State and Creighton to advance.
It will be a game of reunions as former Auburn guard Tre Donaldson will go up against his former team. Donaldson has been a a huge factor in the Wolverines last few games, making several clutch shots to help secure wins for his team.
Another reunion will be former Auburn guard KT Harrell who is now the Director of Basketball Operations at Michigan. Harrell played from 2014-2015 and is best known for his buzzer-beater against LSU in the SEC Tournament which sent the game into overtime. The Tigers would go on to win that game and reach the semifinals for the first time in 30 years.
Michigan is led by their two seven-foot players Danny Wolf and Vladislav Goldin. Both players are leading the team with points and rebounds per game. Auburn’s Chaney Johnson, Johni Broome, and Dylan Cardwell will have their hands full under the basket.
Broome will look to bounce back after a stretch of low scoring games. The Naismith Award finalist and SEC Player of the Year had just eight points and 12 rebounds in the win over Creighton. Broome has also struggled from the free throw line lately shooting 59% for the season.
Auburn’s will also need another big performance from guards Miles Kelly, Denver Jones, Tahaad Pettiford, and Chad Baker-Mazara. All four players scored a combined 60 points in the win over Creighton. The Tigers are 8-0 under Bruce Pearl when the guards score 40 points or more.
Auburn and Michigan tip-off on Friday at 8:39 P.M. central time with coverage on CBS. The winner of that game will face the winner of Michigan State and Ole Miss in the Elite Eight.
