Steven Pearl addresses why Tahaad Pettiford did not start in Auburn’s game at Georgia
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Tahaad Pettiford turned in the 11th 20-point game of his career on Saturday for Auburn, but he did so coming off the bench.
After Auburn’s 104-100 overtime at Georgia, Steven Pearl was asked why Pettiford was not part of the starting lineup.
“It was a coach’s decision. It was a failure to meet our team’s standards and expectations. Tahaad’s got to do a better job of leading by example, and that’s something we continuously talk about,” Pearl told reporters after the game. “Until he does those things off the court… he’s got to stop putting me in these positions where I have to make difficult decisions. That’s part of growth, and that’s part of learning.
“We made the decision yesterday, and he had a great practice and response to it yesterday. But’s got some things that he’s got to fix.If he’s not going to live up to those expectations… and that’s to all of them.
“We told everybody when we got back from Purdue, ‘We’re going to tighten some things up a little bit.’ Guys need to be on time, and guys need to do the things that we’re asking them to do. If they don’t, you’ll come off the bench or lose your rotation. We’ve got a standard, we’ve got an expectation in this program, and it’s going to be upheld.”
Pettiford was Auburn’s leading scorer with 25 points on 10-of-21 shooting from the field, including 3-of-11 from behind the 3-point line. He played 32 minutes of the game, subbing in at the 16:04 mark in the first half. He fouled out with 12 seconds left in regulation.
Auburn will look to bounce back on Tuesday when the Tigers host Texas A&M in their conference home opener.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
