After a 2023-24 season that saw him be named an all-SEC first teamer, a consensus all-American, as well as having a crucial role in Auburn basketball’s SEC Tournament-winning season, Johni Broome was faced with a decision: go pro or return to Auburn for his senior campaign.

And with a post to social media on Wednesday, Broome made his decision clear: He’s back.

There’s no way around it: the return of Broome is huge for Bruce Pearl and the Tigers, who will be eyeing a deeper postseason run next year after Yale bounced them from the NCAA Tournament in the first round in March.

In his junior season, Broome led Auburn’s scoring efforts with a season average of 16.5 points per game. Broome, who stretches 6-foot-10, also led the Tigers on the glass with an average of 8.5 rebounds per game.

Fourteen times throughout the 2023-24 season, Broome logged a double-double — eight of which came in either SEC or postseason play.

Paired with fifth-year senior forward Jaylin Williams, who will not be returning to Auburn as he’s run out of eligibility, Broome made up half of what Pearl believed to be the best front court in the SEC and one of the best front courts in the country last season.

And Broome finished the year with a heap of accolades to help back up Pearl’s claim.

At the conclusion of the 2023-24 season, Broome had been named a consensus third-team all-American, landed on the NABC all-district first team, and was a semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award.

Broome, a 6-foot-10 forward out of Plant City, Fla., was faced with a similar decision last offseason as he initially declared for the NBA Draft. However, Broome went on to only use the opportunity to obtain feedback from NBA scouts and later withdrew his name from the draft and returned to Auburn.

In addition to Broome, the Tigers will also be returning fifth-year senior center Dylan Cardwell, who announced his return to Auburn on April 11.

Together, Broome and Cardwell will help make up an experienced front court for the Tigers next season.