March Madness has reached its final destination—the Alamodome in San Antonio! And what do we have? A Final Four showdown straight out of a basketball fan’s dreams. Conference rivals? Yes! Powerhouse programs? Absolutely. A spicy rematch with bad blood? You already know how the Gators crushed Bruce Pearl’s Tigers. The two teams are about to run it back, and this one’s got all the makings of an instant classic.
Now, if you’ve been following, you might be thinking Florida has the upper hand. And that’s fair—they did hand Auburn one of its rare losses this season. But the Tigers aren’t the same team they were back in February, right? They didn’t exactly look like a No. 1 seed towards the end of the regular season, but once the postseason hit, Auburn found its groove. And now, they’re coming for revenge.
While most predictions lie with Todd Golden’s Florida, national analyst Mike LaTulip is feeling the Tigers, saying, “I like Auburn…I think there’s going to be a lot more focus for Auburn in this game, much more than there was in that first game. I thought they got spread out defensively.” And he’s got a point.
Back in February, Florida took down Auburn 90-81, snapping their 14-game win streak and handing them their only SEC loss. Auburn’s February downfall came down to two things: missed free throws (14-of-23) and costly turnovers (17 points given up off eight cough-ups).
Auburn Tigers forward Johni Broome (4) makes a post move on Florida Gators center Alex Condon (21) as Auburn Tigers take on Florida Gators at Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala., on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025.
Florida’s starting lineup showed up big time, with four players scoring in double figures, while Auburn had just two in that category. But since then? Auburn has tightened up its game. As Tulip opined on The Field of 68, “I think we’re going to see a different Auburn team in this game and like I said particularly on the defensive end i thought they were tremendous defensively against Michigan State and I thought they’ve steadily been on the the ascent defensively since the regular season ended.”
And rightly so, in their most recent battle against Michigan State, they did a stellar job limiting turnovers, turning Sparty’s nine giveaways into 11 crucial points. And when every possession matters, that kind of efficiency is game-changing. And then as the national analyst also highlighted there’s motivation factor.
If there’s anything that can light a fire under a team, it’s a tough loss. Bruce Pearl knows this, and he played up the underdog card against Michigan State—a program that’s been around the block with the likes of Duke, UNC, and Kansas. The result was Auburn took down one of college basketball’s bluebloods and punched their ticket to the Final Four for only the second time in school history.
But now, they have to take it up another notch.
If Auburn wants to be playing on Monday night, first and fore and foremost they need to lock down on perimeter. Gators’ Walter Clayton Jr. went full-on superhero mode last weekend, dropping 30 points in Florida’s five-point win over Texas Tech. This guy has been on fire all tournament long, and if Auburn wants to win, they need to shut him down—period. Denver Jones is Auburn’s best defensive guard, and Miles Kelly has some of the quickest hands in the game. These two need to stick to Clayton like glue, force bad shots, and make him uncomfortable.
Otherwise, Florida’s star guard could single-handedly wreck Auburn’s chances. Then next up, they must make smarter Shot Selection. Auburn shot just 42.9% from the field in their last matchup against Florida. That’s not terrible, but the issue wasn’t just the percentage—it was the shot selection. Too many fadeaway threes. Too many contested looks. And for what?
When you have a dominant post presence like Johni Broome, why wouldn’t you feed him the ball more? In that first meeting, Broome put up 19 shots but only got to the free-throw line twice. That’s just not good enough. This time around, Auburn needs to be smarter with their possessions and take advantage of their size inside.
So, all in all, look, Florida comes into this game riding high on confidence after multiple comeback wins. But the pressure is all on them to win as heavily favoured. Meanwhile, Auburn has flipped the script. They were the heavy favorite back in February—now, they’re the ones with something to prove. Can Florida live up to the hype? Or will Bruce Pearl and his squad crash the party? We’ll find out Saturday when these SEC rival meet.
For the time being, along with Final Four prep, coach Pearl is busy collecting accolades.
Bruce Pearl earns prestigious NABC Coach of the Year honors
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl has spent the season pushing the Tigers to new heights, and now, the accolades are rolling in. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has named Pearl the 2025 Coach of the Year, recognizing his remarkable leadership in guiding Auburn through a historic season.
This marks Pearl’s second time receiving the prestigious honor, having first won it in 1995 while coaching Division II Southern Indiana. With this achievement, Pearl becomes the first SEC coach to win the award since John Calipari in 2015 and only the seventh coach from the conference to claim the honor. He joins an elite list of SEC coaching legends, including Tubby Smith, Nolan Richardson, and Adolph Rupp.
NCAA, College League, USA Basketball: SEC Conference Tournament Semifinal – Tennessee vs Auburn Mar 15, 2025 Nashville, TN, USA Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl watches his team against the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville Bridgestone Arena TN USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xStevexRobertsx 20250315_cec_ra1_017
His impact on Auburn basketball has been undeniable. Just have a look at Auburn’s extraordinary 2024-25 season. Tigers dominated the SEC with a stellar 32-5 record. The team secured the regular season conference title and earned the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. Their résumé also includes an impressive 19 wins against Quad-1 opponents.
Also, earlier this season, the coach achieved another major milestone by surpassing Joel Eaves as Auburn’s all-time winningest head coach, securing his 214th victory since taking over in 2014. So, the recognition is well-earned. You must know that Bruce Pearl stood out among a competitive field as he edged out notable names like Rick Pitino (St. John’s), Kelvin Sampson (Houston), Tom Izzo (Michigan State), and Dennis Gates (Missouri), all of whom won Coach of the Year honors for their respective regions.
Yet, it was Pearl’s ability to elevate Auburn to a championship-caliber team that made him the undeniable choice. Now, the head coach’s focus is on the biggest challenge yet—leading Auburn to its first-ever national championship. Let’s hope they cap off an already historic season with the ultimate prize.
The post Panic Strikes Florida as National Analyst Doubles Down on Bruce Pearl’s Squad Having Front Seat in Final Four Clash appeared first on EssentiallySports.
