MAUI, Hawaii — National Player of the Year candidate Johni Broome and No. 3 Auburn captured the Maui Invitational championship with a 90-76 win over Memphis on Wednesday at Lahaina Civic Center.
Broome and frontcourt running mate Dylan Cardwell dominated Penny Hardaway’s Tigers (6-1). Broome had 21 points, 16 rebounds and six assists and four blocks, while Cardwell put up 18 points and had three rebounds and six assists.
The blowout was reminiscent of the Battle 4 Atlantis last season, where Memphis beat Michigan and Arkansas before losing to Villanova by 16. The Tigers upset No. 2 UConn on Monday, then took down Michigan State on Tuesday.
But Memphis ran into a buzzsaw in Broome and Auburn. The closest Memphis got to the lead in the second half was 13 points (with 12:17 left in the game).
Auburn (7-0) has victories over four top-30 teams in the KenPom rankings, including Houston, Iowa State and North Carolina. Auburn is ranked No. 1 by KenPom.
Memphis star PJ Haggerty finished the tournament with a standout individual performance, putting up 27 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Tyrese Hunter was one of the best players in the tournament after the first two days, averaging 24.5 points and shooting 60% from the 3-point line. But Auburn neutralized Hunter, holding him scoreless in the first half. He scored 11 in the second half. Colby Rogers and Dain Dainja also got into double-digits with 15 and 15 respectively.
Memphis returns to action against Louisiana Tech on Dec. 4 (7 p.m., ESPN+) at FedExForum.
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Memphis basketball vs Auburn score updates
Auburn’s Johni Broome (15 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks) tortured Memphis in the first half to help give Bruce Pearl’s Tigers a 47-31 lead at halftime over Memphis.
Memphis guard Colby Rogers, who was questionable coming into today’s game against Auburn after slipping and apparently injuring his leg in Tuesday’s game, played the first seven minutes. He spent the next five-plus minutes standing at the end of the Tigers’ bench, but he returned to the floor after the under-8 media timeout.
After falling behind 9-0, Memphis has cut Auburn’s lead to 13-8 with just more than 15 minutes left in the game. A 3-pointer by Colby Rogers and a 3-point play from PJ Haggerty are big reasons why.
Rogers was questionable after Tuesday’s game when he slipped and seemed to injure his leg. But he was in the starting lineup and already has a field goal.
Bruce Pearl’s team punched first Wednesday, jumping out to a 9-0 lead in the first 2.5 minutes of the game.
Penny Hardaway will start a lineup of Tyrese Hunter, PJ Haggerty, Colby Rogers, Nicholas Jourdain and Moussa Cisse.
Auburn will start Chad Baker-Mazara, Johni Broome, Miles Kelly, Denver Jones and Dylan Cardwell.
What time does Memphis basketball vs Auburn play today?
- Date: Wednesday, Nov. 27
- Time: 4 p.m. CT
- Location: Lahaina Civic Center
What channel is Memphis basketball vs Auburn game on today?
TV channel: ESPN (Dan Shulman, play-by-play; Jay Bilas, color analyst)
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 98.9-FM The Roar (Dave Woloshin, play-by-play; Matt Dillon, color analyst)
Memphis vs. Auburn will be live streamed on ESPN+.
Memphis basketball vs Auburn predictions
Pearl’s Tigers have an edge on the interior. Hardaway’s Tigers might have one of the best backcourt’s in the country. Memphis by a nose.
Memphis basketball vs Auburn betting odds
Game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Wednesday:
- Spread: Auburn -9.5
- Over/under: 156.5
- Moneyline: Memphis +340, Auburn -450
Memphis basketball vs Auburn injury updates
Tigers guard Tyrese Hunter continues to play through a nagging knee injury that has limited his practice time. But, following Tuesday’s win, there was no talk that Hunter’s status for Wednesday’s game was uncertain.
In addition, Memphis guard Colby Rogers slipped late in the team’s win over Michigan State and came up a little gimpy. That could make him a game-time decision.
Memphis basketball upcoming schedule
Tipoff times not yet set (unless otherwise noted)
- Dec. 4: vs. Louisiana Tech (7 p.m., ESPN+, FedExForum)
- Dec. 8: vs. Arkansas State (3 p.m., ESPNU, FedExForum)
- Dec. 14: at Clemson (10 a.m., ESPN2, Littlejohn Coliseum)
- Dec. 18: at Virginia (6 p.m., ESPN2, John Paul Jones Arena)
- Dec. 21: vs. Mississippi State (11:30 a.m., CBS, FedExForum)
Auburn basketball upcoming schedule
All times central
- Dec. 4: at Duke (8:15 p.m., ESPN)
- Dec. 8: vs. Richmond (11 a.m., SEC Network)
- Dec. 14: vs. Ohio State (Noon, ESPN2, State Farm Arena)
- Dec. 17: vs. Georgia State (7 p.m., SEC Network Plus)
- Dec. 21: vs. Purdue (3:30 p.m., ESPN, Legacy Arena in Birmingham)
Memphis basketball news
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
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