Auburn’s Freshman Guard: A Jersey City Product Built for Big Moments

‘He’s very, very tough, but he plays the game with a smile on his face. 

He enjoys the moment.’ 

   - NICK MARINIELLO, Tahaad Pettiford’s 

     high school coach at Hudson Catholic.

Justin Williams 

The New York Times - Sabato 5 Aprile 2025

Pagina 31

Auburn’s Dylan Cardwell sat in front of his locker, game-worn uniform still on. He shook his head and shrugged.

“He’s just special,” Cardwell said. “There’s nothing he can’t do.

Cardwell was talking about his teammate Tahaad Pettiford minutes after Pettiford, a freshman point guard, scored 20 points in a Sweet 16 win over Michigan. Fifteen of those points came in the second half, with Pettiford sparking a 20-2 run that erased a 9-point deficit and carried the Tigers to the Elite Eight.

It all flowed from Pettiford’s blend of poise and flair, the 6foot-1, 19-year-old playing well beyond his size and years. There was a tide-turning 3-pointer off a broken play, a stepback jumper and a silky driving layup. By the time he drilled a spinning, Kobeesque fadeaway for a bucket and a foul with less than five minutes remaining, the rout was on.

Less than 48 hours later, Pettiford added 10 points and three assists to Johni Broome’s master class against Michigan State, helping the top-seeded Tigers to their second Final Four appearance in program history.

“Not too many freshmen are built like him,” guard Denver Jones said. “Some people just got it. Tahaad got it.

Auburn’s ongoing run in the men’s N.C.A.A. tournament caps a stellar first season for Pettiford, third on the team in scoring (11.7 points) and tied for first in assists (2.9) despite coming off the bench. A five-star, top-30 recruit and McDonald’s All-American in the 2024 class, Pettiford wasn’t exactly under the radar as a prospect. But he has outperformed many of those rated in front of him.

“There aren’t 25 freshmen in college this year that are better than Tahaad Pettiford,” Auburn Coach Bruce Pearl said. “But he’s got a chip on his shoulder. He’s a little guy, and every time he goes out there to prove it.

He always has. Growing up in Jersey City, N.J., Tahaad played against older players, thanks to his father, Travis.

“You’ve got to go against bigger and faster players,” Travis Pettiford said. “I figured if he played up, played hard, the game would get easier as he got older.

That mentality was molded during Travis Pettiford’s playing days at New Jersey’s St. Anthony High School under Coach Bob Hurley, the father of Danny and Bobby Hurley. He learned the value of being coachable, influencing everything from the underdog attitude his son plays with to the hand he shoots with.

“I’m right-handed, actually,” Tahaad Pettiford said. “A lot of people don’t know that.

A southpaw on the court, Pettiford writes and does most menial tasks with his right hand. But around age 6, Travis thought his son’s jump shot looked more natural as a lefty. So he encouraged him to stick with it.

“Being able to get downhill both ways, finish with both hands, it’s helped my game a lot,” Tahaad Pettiford said.

He came up on the crowded courts of Jersey City and played with and against the future fivestar recruits Dylan Harper and Elliot Cadeau. As a freshman at Hudson Catholic Regional High School, Pettiford outdueled Harper and Don Bosco Preparatory High, scoring a game-high 40 points in a triple-overtime win. Last year as a senior, Pettiford scored 42 points and hit a pair of buzzer-beaters against Roselle Catholic — one to tie the game in regulation, the other to win it in double overtime.

“The game comes very easy to him,” said Nick Mariniello, who coached him at Hudson Catholic. “Tahaad has unbelievable court vision, things you cannot teach, seeing things seconds before a play develops. He’s very, very tough, but he plays the game with a smile on his face. He enjoys the moment.” 

That followed him to Auburn, which Pettiford chose over a list of finalists that included UConn, despite the family ties to Danny Hurley.

“They going to kill me, but he picked Auburn,” Travis Pettiford joked. “He chose his path. Auburn is his home.

Tahaad Pettiford has logged his best performances on big stages this season. He put up 21 points in an early win over Houston, then 14 points in a win over Iowa State, 20 in a close loss at Duke and 18 against Purdue. In Southeastern Conference play, he had a seasonhigh 24 points in a road win against Georgia, 21 in a victory at Kentucky and 19 in an overtime loss to Alabama.

He did it all as the sixth man on the team ranked No. 1 in the country for most of the season, starting just one game that Jones missed with injury. On a deep, veteran squad with a clear alpha in Broome, the SEC player of the year, Pettiford carved out and embraced his role without overextending. That is a tough needle to thread — a much-hyped freshman who sacrifices for the good of the team, yet still manages to elevate in big moments. Pettiford embraced the challenge.

“He wasn’t quiet, you know what I’m saying? He’s from Jersey, so he has a little different type of energy to him,” Broome said. “But he came in wanting to learn, wanting to compete and wanting to join what we built. Every night he steps on the court, he’s trying to make an impact for us to win.” 

That reputation is cresting in the N.C.A.A. tournament, where Pettiford scored a game-high 23 points in the second-round win over Creighton to go with six boards and three assists. His second half fueled the Sweet 16 comeback over Michigan, and his 10 points against Michigan State made him the only Auburn player other than Broome to score in double figures.

“His mind-set is to win,” Jones said. “Some freshmen don’t always do that — they try to stand out. But Tahaad’s game is going to stand out regardless. So by coming in and fitting in, his game is standing out.” 

Pettiford’s ascension has commanded added attention from N.B.A. scouts. But up first is a trip to San Antonio, where the Tigers will face their SEC foe and fellow No. 1 seed Florida on Saturday with a spot in the title game at stake. If Auburn is going to get there, with a chance to win the school’s first national championship in men’s basketball, its emergent freshman may have to come up clutch once again. 

“I just think that Tahaad feels prepared,” Pearl said. “He’s been playing guys older than him his whole life. So what’s the difference in the N.C.A.A. tournament?”.