Bruce Pearl addresses first half struggles against Miami

Auburn finds itself down 21-14 with 7:53 remaining in the first half against Miami in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. With early struggles on both sides of the ball, the Tigers have created a large task for themselves in the time left.

During a timeout, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl spoke quickly about the issues he saw early and addressed how he can fix the issues quickly.

“We’ve got to do a better job offensively just taking care of the basketball,” said Pearl. “They turned us over early. We came out with a couple of backdoor looks, we weren’t able to execute it. Their ball pressure is bothering us. And then on the other end, it’s all about 1-on-1 closeouts.”

After quickly running through all the issues he saw from Auburn early against, Bruce Pearl took a deep breathe and provided some perspective during the timeout.

“We’re alright, we’re ok,” Pearl said with a laugh and a smile.

Jaylin Williams currently leads all Auburn scorers with four points off the bench after clearing concussion protocol and receiving a dental operation after the First Round win.

Charles Barkley bets on Auburn

During the CBS Sports coverage of Sunday’s Second Round action in the NCAA Tournament, former Auburn star Charles Barkley made a big promise if his team can knock off Miami. The basketball player turned television personality now has a lot on the line.

During a segment which compared the physical stature and habits of Charles Barkley and former Miami football player Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson – which showed some shocking similarities – he put his pride on the line with a promise if Auburn wins.

“If we win tonight, I might take my shirt off,” said Barkley.

While he did include the word “might” in his statement, giving him an easy out, his track record makes it easy to believe he would follow through. Adding to his motivation to follow through, regular co-hosts Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson are at the table beside him to help provide some peer pressure.