Lior Berman returning to Auburn basketball for fifth season
AUBURN — Auburn basketball walk-on Lior Berman is returning for a fifth season with the Tigers, he announced via Instagram on Wednesday.
Berman, who first joined the team in 2019, broke into the rotation in his third year on the Plains and once again saw meaningful action as a senior last season, averaging 9.4 minutes in 25 games. He averaged 2.2 points, 1.2 rebounds and shot 35.5% from beyond the 3-point arc.
"See y'all next year in The Jungle," Berman wrote in his announcement.
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Berman, who dropped a career-high eight points on three occasions last season, set Neville Arena into a frenzy during the regular-season finale against Tennessee in March after he skied for a fast-break dunk about midway through the second half, extending Auburn's lead to six on the way to a crucial nine-point victory over the Vols.
Coach Bruce Pearl said before that if he had 13 scholarships to hand out last season − the Tigers were limited to 12, a punishment stemming from former assistant Chuck Person's involvement in a bribery scandal − he would have likely given one to Berman. Speaking at an AMBUSH event in Atlanta on April 25, Pearl said he may look to give a scholarship to a walk-on this season now that he's back up to 13.
A native of Birmingham, Berman played at Mountain Brook High School and helped lead the Spartans to a No. 5 ranking by both USA TODAY and MaxPreps during his senior season.
Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Lior Berman returning to Auburn basketball for fifth season
