Auburn's Johni Broome adds to compelling NPOY case in win over Ole Miss

The battle between Auburn forward Johni Broome and Duke forward Cooper Flagg for men's basketball National Player of the Year honors is coming down to the wire.

During a Saturday afternoon showcase against Associated Press No. 23 Ole Miss (16-6, 5-4 in SEC), Broome added to his compelling case with another outstanding individual effort in No. 1 Auburn's 92-82 win.

Broome, a fifth-year senior in his third season at Auburn after beginning his career at Morehead State, scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 2-of-2 from beyond the arc, and added 12 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. It was his 10th 20-point double-double, tying him with Stanford senior forward Maxime Raynaud for the most this season. (h/t Stathead)

Broome is averaging 18.3 points per game on 52.2 percent shooting, and he leads the SEC in rebounds (11.2) and blocks (2.7) per game as Auburn (20-1, 8-0 in SEC) has cruised to an undefeated start in the historically great conference.

According to ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi's most recent update on Jan. 31,  the SEC is in line to receive 13 NCAA Tournament bids, the most in tournament history, two more than the Big East's previous record (11) set in 2011.

Per FanDuel, Broome (+300) trails Flagg (-400) in 2024-25 Wooden Award odds.

The excellent Blue Devils freshman entered Saturday averaging 19.9 points, eight rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.2 blocks per game on 48.7 percent shooting.

No. 2 Duke (18-2, 10-0 in ACC) has gotten off to a similarly hot start in ACC play and has won 14 games in a row ahead of its home Saturday night game against rival North Carolina (13-9, 6-4 in ACC), which lost to Auburn earlier this season, 85-72. Broome had 23 points, 19 rebounds, five assists and three blocks in the wire-to-wire win.

As remarkable as Flagg has been, Broome's strong start to February suggests the Player of the Year race is far from over.

The Tigers have two games remaining against No. 4 Alabama (18-3, 7-1 in SEC), plus home games against No. 5 Florida (18-3, 5-3 in SEC) and Ole Miss and road games against No. 24 Vanderbilt (16-4, 4-3 in SEC), No. 12 Kentucky (15-5, 4-3 in SEC) and No. 13 Texas A&M (16-5, 5-3 in SEC). Broome has several chances to add to his resume, which could go unrivaled by the time the season ends.