By Joshua Miranda

SAN ANTONIO — It’s an all-SEC party in Game 1 of the Final Four. The Southeastern Conference regular-season champions, the Auburn Tigers, are set to take on the conference tournament champion Florida Gators at 6:09 p.m. eastern time on Saturday. But as fans began to gather near the River Walk to see if SEC supremacy will lead to a national championship, the biggest questions surround the availability of Johni Broome.

Broome, who with Duke’s Cooper Flagg is widely considered one of the two best players in the country this year, missed practices on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Auburn coach Bruce Pearl, because of injuries to his left knee and right elbow suffered during the regional final victory over Michigan State last Sunday. In his third year with Auburn, the 22-year-old Broome is averaging a career-best 18.7 points per game along with an SEC-best 10.9 rebounds and 2.11 blocks. The consensus first-team All-American hopes to close out his college career with the biggest prize in the sport.

On Thursday, the Auburn Tigers, along with the other three Final Four teams, practiced at the Alamodome. The good news coming out of the closed practices was that Broome expects to play.

“I practiced today, no limitations,” Broome said in the team’s dressing room. “I’m good. I told them yesterday I was good. Saturday I will be at 100 percent.”

Broome, who had appeared uncomfortable with the way his elbow landed, said he resorted to unconventional recovery methods.

“Punching the wall, hitting the wall, elbowing the wall, falling on the ground on purpose, all types of stuff,” he joked.

The Tigers lost at home to Florida in their one and only matchup on Feb. 8. The Tigers also failed to get their opportunity for revenge as they bowed out early in the SEC Tournament. This game means a lot to this school, which is attempting to reach the national championship game for the first time.

Broome landed awkwardly in the second half of the Tigers’ Elite Eight victory over Michigan State on Sunday after defending a shot at the rim. He was forced to leave the game for more than five minutes. His left knee and right elbow were the collateral damage of his defensive prowess. However, after X-rays were negative, he returned and was on the floor for the final stretch of the game. He shook off any initial concerns by knocking down a 3-pointer and ending the Spartans’ season.

After the game, Broome said he was told that his injury was “nothing wrong” and “nothing serious,” which prompted his return to the court. However, his winces and inability to high-five with his right hand said otherwise.

When Broome was forced to sit out team practices on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Thursday and Friday practices became crucial to assessing Broome’s recovery or determining the need for a contingency plan. Pearl was glad to see his star player participate in practice and was encouraged by how he felt about playing on Saturday.

“Everybody keeps watching him and wondering when is he going to fizzle, when is he going to not show up?’” Pearl said. “Again, he just managed to step up.”

Pearl said he is trusting Broome’s word and his own eye test as he doubles down on his best player.

“We rode him hard,” Pearl said. “We’re going to ride him hard again on Saturday.”