Auburn center Dylan Cardwell has patience rewarded with trip to Final Four

ATLANTA — As he began his climb up the ladder for his turn to cut the nets, Auburn center Dylan Cardwell came to a sudden stop.

Surveying the sea of orange in State Farm Arena, Cardwell raised his right arm in the air and led the exuberant crowd into the school’s battle cry:

“War Eagle, hey!”

Cardwell ended the chant with a scream before resuming his climb, claiming his snippet of nylon to celebrate Auburn’s second trip to the Final Four in program history with Sunday’s 70-64 win over Michigan State in a South Regional final that, despite being played in Atlanta, felt like an Auburn home game.

“Super game, this is Auburn-Atlanta,” Cardwell said afterward about the pro-Auburn crowd that had little problem making the two-hour drive to Atlanta. “I can’t imagine how difficult it is to play in this environment. It was great.”

Auburn’s MVP of the regional was Johni Broome, who shook off a nasty fall midway through the second half to score 25 points and grab 14 rebounds to earn the top player award.

The rising star of the regional was Tahaad Pettiford, the freshman guard who was the only other Auburn player in double-figures (10). Despite coming off the bench in all but one game this season, Pettiford represents the team’s future (if he decides to stay in college, which might be difficult with NBA scouts surely salivating over his athleticism and confidence).

But as the Tigers prepare for their trip to San Antonio next weekend for a Final Four featuring four No. 1 seeds for just the second time in history, Cardwell — the winningest player in Auburn basketball history — just might represent the heart and soul of the team.

“Dylan Cardwell blows away every analytic that’s out there,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said of the Augusta, Georgia, native who led the team’s plus/minus for three straight games before Sunday’s regional final. “You can’t look at the stat sheet and think he’s going to lead in plus-minus, and he does it all the time.”

A quick glance at Cardwell’s stats from Sunday really doesn’t blow you away: he had five points, six rebounds and made just one of his four free-throw attempts (after his only make, Cardwell thrust both fingers in the air and screamed ‘thank you’). But Cardwell was instrumental in maintaining Auburn’s defense when Broome had to leave the game with 10:37 left after landing hard on his right elbow.

“When Johni went out, I immediately thought about Chaney [Johnson] and Dylan, and neither of them went into foul trouble,” Pearl said. “Chaney and Dylan can obviously do what needs to be done on the defensive end and rebounding. When Johni was out, we hung in there and made it difficult for Michigan State to score.”

Auburn led 50-40 when Broome left the game. With Cardwell and Chaney holding down the interior, that lead was still 10 points when Broome returned from the locker room and immediately checked into the game.

“Chaney and Dylan can obviously do what needs to be done on the defensive end and rebounding,” Pearl said. “When Johni was out, we hung in there. We made it difficult for Michigan State to score.”

Cardwell played his part as one of the main defensive centerpieces for the Tigers, which is only appropriate for a guy who arrived at Auburn in 2020, the year after the team’s last trip to the Final Four. While Cardwell was a rotation guy from Day 1, he started just two games prior to this season — his fifth at Auburn.

Cardwell’s modest career averages (4.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game over five seasons) don’t really tell the story of one of the most impactful players on a team that stayed near the top of the national rankings for the entire season.

“He dominates the boards, he’s the best defender on the floor and he doesn’t turn the basketball over,” Pearl said about Cardwell. “So he can’t shoot a jump shot, but he’s going to hand the ball to some guys that can shoot shots.”

And Cardwell plays with a level of intensity and swagger that belies the fact that he’s a God-fearing man who is on the Dean’s List and has made the SEC Academic Honor Roll three times.

Pearl credits Cardwell for sticking with the program, saying that bringing in transfers Walker Kessler (from North Carolina in 2021) and Broome (from Morehead State in 2022) were moves that denied Cardwell opportunities to start.

“We brought him over at the end of the season and said, ‘look, if Johni comes back, two things got to happen,’ ” Pearl said. “’You either need to leave because it’s not fair to play you behind him again, you deserve more. Or I’m going to start the two of you every game together if you stay.’ ”

Cardwell’s reward for staying: a trip to the Final Four.

It was only appropriate that as the team left the State Farm Arena court after cutting down the nets, it was Cardwell who carried the regional championship trophy into the locker room.

“At Auburn, 2019 is the year everyone talks about,” Cardwell said in the winning locker room, clutching that trophy. “They’re the foundation of this program. I’m just happy that now my name can now be included in Auburn history.”