Johni Broome is a warrior. After he left Auburn's Elite Eight game against Michigan State with a scary-looking injury in the second half, viewers assumed the Tigers would have to play the rest of the game, and possibly the tournament, without their star big man.
He took an ugly fall with 10:37 left in the game after he went up to contest a layup from Spartan forward Frankie Fidler. He went down awkwardly on his elbow, ankle and wrist, leaving slim hopes he'd return.
Johni Broome is down in noticeable pain pic.twitter.com/fLVg6m91ok
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 30, 2025
He appeared to say "I'm done" before he exited the court. The scary fall left Broome's parents emotional as they looked on. They came down to the court level to speak with him and give him a hug before he went to the locker room.
But somehow, someway, Broome returned. And in triumphant fashion at that.
He walked out of the locker room to a standing ovation. After a quick chat with his coaches, he gave a thumbs up and jogged to the scorer's table to check back into the game. The crowd erupted:
THAT'S JOHNI BROOME'S MUSIC 🎶#MarchMadness @AuburnMBB pic.twitter.com/FbHruAgSLG
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2025
Then, he nailed a three-pointer to put the Tigers up 12 less than a minute later in a truly incredible moment:
THE JOHNI BROOME GAME ™️#MarchMadness @AuburnMBB pic.twitter.com/A8vK7ERpoM
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2025
The clutch three gave Broome 25 points on the night, along with 14 rebounds.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Johni Broome's Unexpected Return Brought Auburn Fans to Their Feet.
