“They force you to fight, they force you to elbow”: NCAA analyst reviews Tennessee’s plan in loss vs Auburn in Johni Broome’s comeback game

On Saturday, Jan. 25, the Auburn Tigers utilized the return of fifth-year star Johni Broome to full extent against the Tennessee Volunteers. The first-ranked team in the nation pulled a nail-biting 53-51 win in the SEC matchup after a grueling back-and-forth affair for their sixth straight conference victory, 18th overall, of the 2024-2025 season.

Broome had been out with a left ankle sprain suffered in the Bruce Pearl-coached squad's 66-63 road triumph over the South Carolina Gamecocks on Jan. 11. He looked his usual self to the tune of a double-double in 33 minutes played off the bench with 16 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and four blocks.

In Monday's episode of "The Field of 68: After Dark" on YouTube, college basketball analyst Terrence Oglesby, alongside hosts Rob Dauster and John Fanta, detailed the kind of grit and grind Auburn showed at home against Tennessee.

"The fact that Tennessee had to go down there and forced their type of game on Auburn and Auburn still found a way to win, impressed me more than anything else. Tennessee's style of play takes the crowd out of the equation because they're so physical and they force you to fight and they force you to elbow and all this stuff," he explained. (1:51)

"Every catch is tough when you play Tennessee. Auburn's like, 'Okay, we can play that game too.' And, you get a guy back in Johni Broome, who we know how good he is. He isn't (at) the top of his game. He hasn't played in like a month, and it wasn't an easy sprain either," Oglesby continued.

"So, for him to come back, I thought was huge. A rock fight is the best way to put it," he then added.

With another conference victory and Broome getting back into the scheme of things, the Tigers are poised to continue with both their top SEC and national ranking as they now match up against a powerhouse LSU Tigers on the road on Wednesday, Jan. 29.

Terrence Oglesby says to never count out the Auburn Tigers' ability to unleash gritty finishes

Terrence Oglesby shared that teams that face the Tigers should never look down Bruce Pearl's squad's ability to come out victorious in physical and gritty games.

"It goes back (to) them winning at home in a style that's not necessarily their favorite, playing Tennessee's way. Auburn comes out on top and to me, that says more about Auburn than it does anything else because they can beat you in a grind-it-out, grubby type of game," Oglesby said. (2:25)

While Johni Broome, the Tigers' leading scorer, has tendencies to drive inside and score in the paint more, Auburn is currently unleashing a respectable 37.2% clip from the three-point territory. As such, outings like they one had against the Volunteers showcase the kind of versatility they possess.