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Bruce Pearl calls on Tennessee fans to cheer on Auburn vs. Creighton
By Mark Kern
Published:
Bruce Pearl and Auburn will look to advance to the Sweet 16 on Saturday as the Tigers take on Creighton in Lexington at 7:10 p.m. ET. Auburn isn’t the only SEC basketball school that Pearl has coached at, as he also had a stint at Tennessee.
During his six seasons in Knoxville, Pearl posted a record of 145-61. The Volunteers went to the NCAA Tournament in all six years, making the Sweet 16 three times, and the Elite Eight once.
The Volunteers just happen to be playing their Round of 32 game in Lexington we well, as the Volunteers will be taking on UCLA in the game right after Auburn. With the Vols in Rupp Arena, Pearl called for the Tennessee fans to unite, and to support the SEC as a whole by cheering for Auburn in its game against Creighton.
“I appreciate that. I had thought about that a little bit,” Pearl told reporters on Friday. “I think because Tennessee and Auburn are in different regions and because Tennessee and Auburn have played so competitively against one another — because Coach (Rick) Barnes and I have got a very close relationship and because I used to be the Tennessee coach and it was great to be a Tennessee Vol back in the — I think Tennessee fans will cheer for us, and I hope they do. But they won’t be able to rebound for us or put balls in the bucket from the stands. But I think SEC will be represented well tomorrow.”
Pearl and the Tigers will look to go out and play their type of game. They entered March Madness having lost 3 of their last 4 games, and they weren’t happy with their performance in the win against Alabama State.
Dylan Cardwell said the team had multiple team meetings in the last 24 hours and has promised a statement performance vs. the Blue Jays. If the team can deliver on that promise, then it won’t matter who is cheering for Auburn in that arena.
