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Auburn just dominated Alabama on the road, and have the potential to go down as (one of) the greatest teams in college basketball history

You’ve seen the KenPom stats on this Auburn offense being one of the best all time and the team’s overall rating standing close to the best Duke and Kentucky teams of recent memory. The fact of the matter is, Auburn is now 23-2, ranked first in nearly every metric – predictive or resume, and is an astonishing 14-2 against Q1 opponents. With a hiccup last weekend against a Florida team that shot the lights out, dismantling Alabama in its own gym was a great step in reminding everyone just how good this Auburn team is.

The Tigers led by 10+ at a handful of different points throughout the game, and even halfway through the second half when Alabama was making a run and tied the game, Auburn had plenty of guys that could make the big shots. First Tahaad Pettiford broke a 65-65 tie, then less than 30 seconds later, Chad Baker-Mazara put Auburn up for good with a three to make it 71-68. The score finished 94-85, as the Tigers hit 22 of their 32 free throw attempts on the night, helping to salt the game away late. Six Auburn players scored at least 13 points, speaking to the volume of talent on this roster.

Johni Broome (18.1 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 2.7 bpg) battled an injury throughout the second half, but still put up a very solid performance, even by his standards, scoring 19 points on 7-16 shooting and adding 14 rebounds, six assists, and two blocks against the number two team in the country. Broome hasn’t quite been his same efficient self since coming back from his injury, but his overall production hasn’t wavered. The media has fallen in love with Cooper Flagg in regard to the National Player of the Year race, but I don’t think it’s fair to count out Broome completely, especially if Auburn were to finish the regular season without another scrape. With the widely regarded toughest schedule in the country, Auburn has gone 23-2, and Johni Broome is the largest number in that equation by a good margin.

Off the bench, Chaney Johnson was the guy who shined the brightest in the first half, scoring 12 of his 14 points on the afternoon in the game’s opening 20 minutes. Many people were concerned about this Auburn team in the preseason due to the lack of a forward to go next to Broome, but with Cardwell as a solid energy guy at the five, Johnson has come into the games with some freedom, and his strides made from last season to this have not gone unnoticed. Johnson has more than doubled his scoring output from last year, averaging 10.4 ppg and 5.2 rpg on the season, and is averaging 15 ppg over the last four.

They say to win in March you need great guards though, and Auburn has exactly that as well. A year after a first-round exit with less than spectacular play in the backcourt, Bruce Pearl added Pettiford (11.6 ppg, 39.5% 3P) and Miles Kelly (10.9 ppg, 40.1% 3P) and has seen great improvement from Denver Jones (10.7 ppg, 44.5% 3P) and Baker-Mazara (12.3 ppg, 37.8% 3P).

The fearlessness of Pettiford as a freshman has showed up a handful of teams throughout the season already, single-handedly leading Auburn to tight wins over Houston and Georgia and scoring an impressive 20 points with four three-pointers in a close loss in Cameron Indoor Stadium to Duke. Pettiford finished with 13 points against Alabama yesterday, including a three to silence the crowd after Alabama had tied the game and was in the midst of a 15-2 run.

Jones, Kelly, and Baker-Mazara each had at least 15 in yesterday’s win, combining to shoot 7-14 from behind the arc. Jones has been the one I’ve been most impressed with this season, as he’s been so much more involved offensively for Auburn and truly looks comfortable in the Auburn jersey in his second season after transferring in from FIU. The plethora of scoring options along the perimeter open things up for Broome inside, and the Tigers’ offense is rightfully considered one of the best all-time.

The biggest remaining tests for Auburn come in the final three games of the season, as the Tigers visit Kentucky and Texas A&M before Alabama visits Neville Arena for what should be another highly anticipated contest in the SEC. Both teams have a treacherous final stretch, but with just one game currently separating them, the final meeting could be the decider for the SEC regular season title. That being said, it’s also true that both teams have a lot to play for past the regular season, and especially with what I’ve seen from this Auburn team, I think it’d be a massive surprise to not see them in San Antonio in early April.

With such great balance inside and out, a dominant interior post player, experienced scoring guards, a dynamic and fearless freshman, and an eight-man rotation that brings so much energy from top-to bottom, this Auburn team is on a crash-course with history and has Bruce Pearl thinking about lifting his first national championship trophy, and we’re only two weeks into February.

Other Things to Note:

• #6 Houston takes down #13 Arizona on the road 62-58 behind 19 points from Milos Uzan
• John Tonje scores 32 points to lead #16 Wisconsin to 94-84 win at Mackey Arena over #7 Purdue
• Tom Izzo becomes the Big Ten’s all-time leader in wins as #11 Michigan State tops Illinois 79-65
• #17 Kansas falls on the road to Utah 74-67 behind 24 points from Utes guard Gabe Madsen
• #24 Creighton, #9 St. John’s meet at Madison Square Garden with first place in the Big East on the line (3:00 ET, FS1)