When Bruce Pearl signaled down toward the end of the bench Thursday night and called Yohan Traore’s name, the freshman combo forward felt a jolt of excitement course through him.

Traore’s freshman season hasn’t gone as some would have expected, given his five-star status as one of the top-25 players in the 2022 class. He essentially fell out of Auburn’s regular rotation at the start of SEC, playing sporadically as Auburn fought toward a 10-8 record in conference action.

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Yet there was Traore, the 6-foot-10 Frenchman, with an opportunity in the NCAA Tournament. With starting power forward Jaylin Williams hampered by early foul trouble and Chris Moore reaggravating a shoulder injury, Pearl turned to Traore for some valuable minutes off the bench in ninth-seeded Auburn’s 83-75 win against eighth-seeded Iowa at Legacy Arena.

“It was crazy,” Traore said Friday. “You know, when he called my name, I was so excited.”

Traore played three rotations in the opening-round win, logging nine minutes off the bench for the Tigers on a night where the reserves proved crucial as the team advanced to the Round of 32, where they’ll face top-seeded Houston on Saturday night (6:10 p.m. CT on TBS). Traore didn’t score or attempt a shot, and his only stat was a foul he committed, but he was a plus-five in his time on the court and was able to get his feet wet in the NCAA Tournament.

“It means that they trust me,” Traore said. “I feel like I stay ready, so eventually if somebody gets hurt, I’ll be ready. I wasn’t surprised when they called my name, and I feel like I just took the opportunity.”

Those opportunities have been hard to come by for Traore during his first season of college ball. He was a regular in the rotation during nonconference play, when he logged double-digit minutes in 11 of the 12 games he appeared in and split time at the four and the five. When SEC play got underway, though, Traore’s rotations were more sporadic. He averaged just seven minutes per game in 11 appearances during SEC play and scored 12 total points across those games.

It was a difficult adjustment for Traore, a five-star prospect who originally signed with LSU but got a release from his letter of intent after Will Wade was fired last year. He then visited Auburn and signed with Bruce Pearl’s team soon thereafter.

“It was tough, mentally, but I just got to keep my head up,” Traore said. “I kept working. I feel like I did a great job staying ready. It was tough mentally, but I feel like I got over it now.”

That meant, as Pearl is fond of saying, staying right and staying ready — even if it meant a more predominant role on the scout team instead of the Tigers’ regular rotation. But Traore made the most of those practice reps and extra time in the gym (Williams said Traore often “goes crazy” and “gets buckets” against the rotation players while running with the scout team in practice), and he has started to regain his confidence and his rhythm.

“It’s amazing to me because Yo, like sometimes he be rotating at four and five,” Williams said. “Like, my freshman year, I couldn’t remember no plays. You could ask any of our senior class, like Yo’s always knowing — he has a feel for it. He already knows where he needs to be. He’s going to be playing physical, and he’s going to be himself all the time.”

There’s still a learning curve for Traore, whose basketball experience is relatively limited. He only began playing the sport a few years ago, and while he has the physical tools that project a high ceiling, it’s going to be a process for him to actualize that potential.

But will that happen at Auburn? Traore said he’s focused on the moment and contributing to the Tigers’ NCAA Tournament run, but his plan is to “most likely” return to the Plains next season instead of exploring the transfer portal. He expressed appreciation for Pearl’s continued belief in him and fellow freshman Chance Westry, adding that the two former top-40 recruits can “really do some big things” next season.

“(Traore’s) future holds a lot,” Williams said. “Yo just started playing basketball not that many years ago, so when he gets a great feel for the game — he already has his shot, but when he gets his form right and all those things together, he’s going to be great.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.