Bruce Pearl defends his trust of 'crazy' Chad Baker-Mazara despite on-court antics earlier in year

Chad Baker-Mazara is a fiery player. Fire can grow out of control or, in the right hands, it can be harnessed. While Baker-Mazara can burn Auburn from time to time, he’s become quite the tool in head coach Bruce Pearl‘s hands.

Pearl will need Baker-Mazara to be at his best when Auburn squares off against Michigan State on Sunday in the Elite Eight. During an appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay ahead of the showdown, Pearl provided a hilarious answer when asked what comes to mind when he hears the name, Chad Baker-Mazara.

“Crazy and mine,” Pearl said. “My crazy. No, listen, passion, intensity — he cares so much. He puts a lot of pressure on himself. That’s one of the things that sometimes gets him, where he gets out of sorts a little bit. He wants to win so bad. Again, doesn’t want to disappoint his teammates.

“The thing I’ve told Chad is, ‘Look, you can affect the game, and the outcome of the game is winning by rebounding, by defending, by using your length, by communicating.’ Yeah, he can go through phases where he can get really hot. I trust Chad Baker-Mazara with the ball in his hands. I think he’s going to make the right read and the right play.”

Baker-Mazara’s passion has landed him in trouble a couple of times this season. In Auburn’s 93-91 loss to Alabama in the regular-season finale, Baker-Mazara was ejected after he appeared to elbow Chris Youngblood in the back of the head.

Baker-Mazara was also ejected for committing a Flagrant 2 foul in Auburn’s loss to Yale in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Despite Baker-Mazara’s occasional antics, Pearl insists he’s a special player.

“So many guys in ball screen or in certain actions, you know if they don’t shoot it, they can’t do anything else. You know, they don’t play-make it, they can’t do anything else,” Pearl said. “Chad Baker-Mazara, I can put him in space and trust that he can make the right plays based on how the defense is guarding him.”

Baker-Mazara is averaging 12.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season while shooting 45.1% from the field and 37.9% from beyond the arc. He was pivotal in Auburn’s second-round win over Creighton. He racked up 17 points in just 21 minutes of action against the Bluejays.

The Tigers will need Baker-Mazara to step up again on Sunday as they square off against Michigan State at 5:05 p.m. ET. The game will air live on CBS.