Tennessee

'It felt amazing': Johni Broome returns to lead Auburn over Tennessee

Published

1 year ago

January 26, 2025

'It felt amazing': Johni Broome returns to lead Auburn over Tennessee

AUBURN — It was a long two weeks of rehabilitation and urgency for Auburn All-American center Johni Broome.

After turning his left ankle seriously against South Carolina two weeks ago, Broome missed two games before finally returning to the practice courts during the middle of last week. He wore a protective boot around the practice gym and around campus up until Wednesday.

Broome practiced on Thursday and Friday, but still entered Saturday somewhat of a game time decision. During the day Saturday, the final decision was made that Broome would indeed play, but he wouldn’t start.

Three minutes into the game, he took the court, and 30 minutes later, Broome finished with a game-high 16 points, 13 rebounds and three more blocked shots.

Against the nation’s No. 1 defense, it was the kind of game that should vault Broome back atop the National Player of the Year standings.

“It felt amazing to go out there and compete with my brothers,” Broome said. “This week was very rough. Ultimately, I wanted to be out there to help them win, help them grind it out. It was a rough one, but we got it done.”

BRUCE PEARL REACTS TO THE WIN: ‘I KNOW WE CAN PLAY BETTER’

Broome credited Senior Athletic Trainer Clark Pearson and Director of Sports Performance Damon Davis, among others, for aiding in his return. In all, Broome spent 10-hour days rehabbing and preparing for Tennessee during the last week, culminating in 33 minutes of action on Saturday night.

When asked postgame what the percentage health of his ankle was, Broome gave a quick answer.

“Good enough to play,” he said.

And it also didn’t hurt Broome’s chances of playing when he woke up on Saturday morning to pieces of paper with the Tennessee logo drawn on it stuck underneath his windshield. Broome assumed it was Tennessee fans doing some good-natured taunting.

“At that moment, I knew I was playing no matter what,” he said.

In the final minute, Broome racked up two rebounds and one all-important assist to Miles Kelly for the game-winning three. Broome said the under-4 timeout, with Tennessee up by four, it was do-or-die time for the Tigers.

“Let’s get four stops,” Broome said of the message in the huddle. “The offense will come.”

The offense did come, as Tahaad Pettiford hit a floater to bring Auburn within two, followed by Kelly’s big three, and then another free throw by Pettiford, giving Auburn a 6-0 run to end the game.

While Auburn sits at 18-1 on the season, with seven ranked wins and 11 Quad I wins, things haven’t come easy. The Tigers’ win on Saturday was their sixth win by five points or less this season. It’s quite the contrast to last season, when nearly every game Auburn won was by double digits.

“Last year, we won every game by double digits. This year, we beat South Carolina at the buzzer, then Texas, close game, Georgia close game, here close game, Maui close games, Houston close game,” Broome said.

“You go down the line on how many close games we’ve had and it shows the grit of this team. The last four minutes, if it’s a close game, we huddle up and rely on our defense.”

Given Broome’s performance, is there any mystery heading into a new week about Broome’s health and whether he will return to the starting lineup? The short answer from Bruce Pearl: no.

“He’ll be back,” Pearl said. “Oh yea, he’s back.”

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Tennessee

Memphis voters file federal lawsuit against new congressional map, claiming discrimination: ‘White control over Tennessee politics’

Published

4 hours ago

May 12, 2026

Press Room

Memphis voters file federal lawsuit against new congressional map, claiming discrimination: ‘White control over Tennessee politics’

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WSMV) – Three Memphis voters, through the American Civil Liberties Union, have filed a federal lawsuit against Tennessee leaders, claiming the state’s new congressional maps are discriminating against Black voters.

The ACLU announced the lawsuit on Monday, saying that three organizations — the Black Clergy Collaborative of Memphis, the Memphis A. Philip Randolph Institute and the Equity Alliance, are also part of the lawsuit that was filed against Sec. of State Tre Hargett, Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins and several others.

“In May 2026, over the course of mere days, a White-dominated supermajority of the Tennessee General Assembly redrew Tennessee’s congressional map to crack the predominantly Black city of Memphis into three pieces and destroy the only district in which Black voters are able to elect representatives of their choice, shutting Black voters completely out of power in federal elections in Tennessee,” the filing states.

The ACLU and the other plaintiffs echo arguments made by Democrats while the maps were being debated during last week’s special session: “The cracking of Memphis unlawfully targeted Black voters.”

“The new plan carves through the center of Tennessee’s second largest city, dividing neighborhoods that have voted together for decades, splitting numerous counties and precincts, and cutting the Black population into thirds with suspect precision,” the lawsuit says. “The districts then run hundreds of miles east towards the Nashville suburbs, snaking through predominantly White and rural counties to dilute the voting power of now-divided Black Memphians.”

Gov. Bill Lee signed the new congressional map into law last week. The new map splits Shelby County, home of Memphis, into three districts.

Republicans have said the map modernizes the districting process and removes “racial data from the mapmaking process entirely.” Democrats, on the other hand, say that the move is meant to dismantle the Black-majority district.

Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R) told WSMV that Republicans “have been very clear” on their intention to secure a ninth Republican seat in the state. He has said the map would help “ensure the state’s representation in Washington reflects its conservative values.”

The lawsuit draws significant attention to the racial makeup of Tennessee lawmakers, describing, “White control over Tennessee politics.” Plaintiffs allege that a white majority “faction” of state leaders “gave bizarre, robotic answers to the most basic questions about the map they were sponsoring.”

“None of the sponsors of the plan would admit who actually drew it, and the lead Senate sponsor—a White legislator with over a decade of service in the Tennessee General Assembly who had attended law school in Memphis — would not say whether Memphis was predominantly Black and claimed not to know that Congressional District 9 was a majority- Black district,” the filing says.

They seem to be referencing Sen. John Stevens (R-Huntingdon), who was asked during the special session if he was aware that the majority of the residents in the ninth district are Black.

“I’m not aware,” he responded. “I know how the map is divided, but I don’t know the racial makeup of the map.”

Stevens got his juris doctorate from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.

The three Memphis residents who took part in the lawsuit are Amber Sherman, a lifelong resident of Memphis and the lead Tennessee regional organizer for Black Voters Matter Fund, Rachael Spriggs, a Memphis resident for more than 20 years who is the director of Power Building for the Equity Alliance, and Kermit Moore, a nearly lifelong resident of Memphis who is the president of the Memphis A. Philip Randolph Institute.

The lawsuit claims intentional discrimination in violation of the 14th and 15th Amendments, as well as retaliation for protected expression and association in violation of the First Amendment.

Plaintiffs are asking the court to declare that the newly drawn map is unconstitutional and restore district lines before primary elections proceed.

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Tennessee

New Tennessee law allows K9 officers to be transported by helicopter, ambulance to vet

Published

16 hours ago

May 11, 2026

Press Room

New Tennessee law allows K9 officers to be transported by helicopter, ambulance to vet

Tennessee State Senators Michele Reneau of Signal Mountain and Bo Watson of Hixson spoke today about the new law supporting police K-9’s.

The act allows injured dogs to get stabilization services on-site and then be transported via ambulance or helicopter to a vet hospital.

“In the past, officers were basically putting the k9 in their car and transporting them in their in their own vehicle, they didn’t have an ambulance or an air ambulance,” said Senator Watson. “This allows for an air ambulance. It also allows for a educational program for those in EMS, who will be taught how to manage canines emergency medical condition, which is different than a human’s.”

In April, Erlanger flew a K9 officer from Clay County, to North Carolina.

It was the first time the program was used for a live transport after several training runs.

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Tennessee

What You Need to Know About Tennessee Softball’s Path to Another WCWS | Rocky Top Insider

Published

1 day ago

May 11, 2026

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What You Need to Know About Tennessee Softball’s Path to Another WCWS | Rocky Top Insider

Tennessee softball’s path back to the Women’s College World Series is set. On Sunday night, the Lady Vols were named the No. 7 overall seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament and will host the regional stage in Knoxville as it looks to return to the WCWS in back-to-back seasons.

The Lady Vols are matched up with Virginia, Indiana and Northern Kentucky in the regionals. It would play Georgia, Clemson, UNC Greensboro or Charleston in the super regionals.

Ahead of the tournament, here’s a look at each team in the Knoxville Regional and potential matchups for the ensuing best-of-three super regional if Tennessee advances.