The 2024-2025 college basketball season is quickly approaching as media days get underway for many conferences and preseason polls make their debut. The nation is also getting a look at what players will be worth keeping an eye on this season, which Auburn has a couple of.
[autotag]Johni Broome[/autotag] and [autotag]Chad Baker-Mazara[/autotag] both earned preseason All-SEC honors this year, with Broome being named to the First Team and Baker-Mazara to the Third Team. Broome was also nearly tabbed as the preseason SEC Player of the Year, but was edged out by Mark Sears of Alabama.
Both players had tremendous seasons last year and look to do more of the same on the court in just a matter of weeks.
Broome was far and away the Tigers’ leading scorer last year with 576 points, averaging 24.8 points per game. He also was one of the team’s most reliable shooters, converting 54.8% of his shots from the field. He shot 35.4% from distance, but also had his struggles from the free throw line, where he posted a 61.5% success rate.
Broome was also electric on the defensive side of the ball, averaging 8.5 rebounds per game to go with his 31 steals and 78 blocks.
To compliment his SEC Tournament MVP trophy from last year, Broome was also named to the All-SEC First Team and SEC All-Defensive Team for his stellar performance.
Baker-Mazara also completed his first year on the Plains with some big production numbers. He was third on the team in scoring, posting 350 points on the year while shooting 45.2% from the field. He excelled behind the arc though, shooting 41.8% on the year, which tied as the team’s best percentage with [autotag]Denver Jones[/autotag].
Baker-Mazara also made plays all over the floor, racking up 77 assists on the year, while forcing 36 steals and 17 blocks on defense to cause disruption.
His play in the SEC Tournament earned him a spot on the SEC-All Tournament Team, something he looks to improve on and earn again in his senior season.
Auburn takes the court for the very first time this season on Nov. 1 when it plays FAU in a charity exhibition game at Neville Arena. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CST.
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