LEXINGTON, Ky. — Creighton screens, cuts, passes and shoots on Saturday the same way it did Thursday.
Auburn loses shooters, casts up curious shots early in the clock and hits energy lulls Saturday the same way it did Thursday.
Creighton wins. And might not have to do anything more than dribble it out at the end. Yes, this is the round of 32, when we should stop expecting mismatches. But South No. 1 seed — and No. 1 overall seed — Auburn (29-5) and No. 9 seed Creighton (25-10) would have been a mismatch for most of the season. Now?
“We won’t beat Creighton playing the way we played tonight,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said in real speak and not coachspeak Thursday at Rupp Arena after the latest alarming performance from his team, an 83-63 win over South No. 16 seed Alabama State that turned out to be an inevitable talent flex with little to satisfy Pearl about the Tigers’ current state.
That’s apparent from watching him on the sidelines. He’s not happy with the way things are going. He shouldn’t be. A malaise has set in since the first day of this month, in the same arena, when Auburn last looked like Auburn for 40 minutes — blasting Kentucky 94-78 to improve to 27-2 on the season.
At that point, Auburn was No. 2 overall in Bart Torvik’s adjusted efficiency rankings, just behind Houston, with the No. 1 offense in the sport and the No. 9 defense. Since then, Auburn has lost three of five games. In those five games, Auburn has been the No. 40 team in the nation, per Torvik’s data — 54th in offensive efficiency and 65th in defensive efficiency.
The numbers match the action on the court, which was met appropriately Thursday with a Pearl repertoire that included quizzical looks, palms-up shrugs and angry words. During one timeout amid a 18-6 Hornets run, Pearl took time to yell at his players then gathered his assistant coaches and let them have it for a few seconds.
Pearl has, in a matter of days, gone through stages of realization — at least publicly. Saturday’s loss to Tennessee in the SEC tournament semifinals prompted a question about “panic” settling in, and Pearl met it with sarcasm.
“I’m really glad you asked me that question,” he said. “We lost to Alabama, Tennessee and at Texas A&M. Yeah, we’re panicked. That’s a real softball. We lost to some great teams. We lost at the buzzer against Alabama. … Yeah, we’re panicked. I can hardly wait till next weekend to start playing again.”
That had to be what Auburn fans wanted to hear. That had to be what Auburn players wanted to hear. And Pearl was right — losing to two No. 2 seeds and a No. 4 seed on the road doesn’t necessarily speak of a team circling the drain. Of course, in the days leading into the tournament, the film told the story internally of too much erosion of focus on both ends of the floor.
“Pissed off” is how Dylan Cardwell characterized the Tigers. That’s how Pearl wanted them. Then they messed around against the overmatched Hornets. Human nature given the talent gap? Perhaps. Pearl started his postgame comments focusing on the positive and giving credit to a scrappy underdog.
Then it was like watching a parent listing the things he needs his teenagers to do and getting upset as he talks through all the things they aren’t doing. Bad foul shooting. Dirty dishes. Careless turnovers. Garbage not taken out. Not knowing the scouting report on defense. Late homework. Taking “my turn” shots rather than running what’s called. Texting during dinner.
“If there’s one thing I can get my guys from this point forward to lock into right now, did we value every possession on the defensive end?” Pearl said. “Did we value (them) on the offensive end? Scoring through contact or did we just rely on the whistle? And then (do) we finish plays? That’s the biggest difference right now between the way we were playing earlier in the season and the way we’re playing right now. You can do that against a team that you’re better than, but you can’t do that — we won’t be able to do that from this point forward.”
Around the same time Pearl was opening that vein, his son and associate head coach, Steven Pearl, was naming names on the postgame show on Auburn’s radio network. He called the team’s overall effort “embarrassing” and said seniors Chad Baker-Mazara and Johni Broome, in particular, need to play harder.
“Our two best players, for us to be successful, have to play with more effort and energy,” Steven Pearl said of those comments Friday, with the Tigers back at Rupp preparing for Saturday’s opportunity to reach the Sweet 16 in Atlanta. “They need to do what they’ve done all season. I just didn’t think they did that yesterday. I think last year we left a lot of things unsaid and it kind of snuck up and bit us in the end. We don’t want that to happen this year. We just want it all out there and want it to be addressed. (Broome) is the national player of the year for a reason, he’s the best player in college basketball. For us to be successful, he has to play with a different motor and different energy.”
Asked about those comments Friday, Broome said: “I mean, I’ve got to do better myself. I’ve got to do better.”
Baker-Mazara said: “If we do that again, we’re gonna be home in the next 24 hours.”
“It was a calling out,” Bruce Pearl said Friday. “And we call each other out all the time. We hold each other accountable.”
This “calling out” will be hailed for its timing and effectiveness if the Tigers of November through February re-emerge at Rupp. If not, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Steven Ashworth and Jamiya Neal are going to have a lot of fun on Saturday. The Tigers of March won’t see the end of it.
(Photo of Bruce Pearl: Jordan Prather / Imagn Images)
