Johni Broome made a declaration to ESPN in February. "I think I am the best player in college basketball, but that's something that doesn't have to be said," Broome said. After surviving a gauntlet of record-breaking SEC regular-season battles and battling through injuries -- including an elbow injury that sidelined him for five minutes of game time in the Elite Eight -- the Auburn Tigers star has a chance to prove his claim.

SAN ANTONIO — Auburn’s Johni Broome, the SEC Player of the Year and National Player of the Year contender, is not expecting to be limited at all by his injured right elbow. Broome practiced Thursday at the Alamodome for the first time since suffering the injury in Sunday’s Elite Eight and reported no issues.

Less than 48 hours from tipoff in San Antonio, one of the major questions for Auburn is star forward Johni Broome’s health status. Broome was injured in the Tigers’ Elite 8 win Sunday over Michigan State in Atlanta.