It appeared Johni Broome’s day was done in the Elite Eight and Auburn was going to have to play the final 10 minutes of Sunday’s game against Michigan State without its top star.
Auburn’s star forward departed the game with just over 10 minutes to go after landing awkwardly on his right elbow following a shot contest. As Auburn drove up the court with the ball following Michigan State’s miss, Broome remained down on the court in pain before play stopped.
After a few moments, Broome was able to get up and walk off the court under his own power. However, he went straight to the locker room. He told teammates to finish the game and said he wasn’t feeling OK when asked by Auburn coach Bruce Pearl, according to the CBS broadcast.
As Auburn held a 50-40 lead at the time of the injury with 10:37 remaining, the Tigers went cold offensively for a few minutes following the injury. But right as Auburn was heating back up, Broome made his way back. He re-entered the game with 5:29 remaining as Michigan State cut Auburn’s lead to 57-48.
On his second possession back in the game, Broome made his presence felt. He drained a 3-pointer that gave Auburn a 60-48 lead with 4:48 remaining.
Broome left the game again during a media timeout with 3:47 remaining, but X-rays on his elbow were negative, according to CBS Sports. As Michigan State made it a seven-point game with 1:40 remaining, Broome was put back in with 1:26 left.
Broome, who was unanimously voted an All-American and is one of the two top candidates for National Player of the Year, had 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go with 12 rebounds at the time of the injury.
This is a developing story.
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