AUBURN, Ala. – In the five years since he helped Auburn advance to the Final Four, Horace Spencer has put his passport to good use while playing professionally in Argentina, Turkey, France and Finland.
Knee surgery last season temporarily slowed Spencer’s globetrotting, allowing Horace to return to Auburn University to complete his degree and graduate on Aug. 3
“I’ve got a lot more basketball in me,” he said. “I’m not ready to give it up yet. I’m only 27.”
A consensus top 100 recruit from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the 6-8 Spencer played four seasons for Auburn from 2015-19, concluding his career with a pair of SEC titles and a magical NCAA Tournament run.
To become the first team from the state of Alabama to reach the Final Four, Auburn defeated Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky in an eight-day span in March 2019.
“A hard road,” Spencer said. “We played all blue bloods. I don’t think people realize how hard it is to get there. It takes a lot of sacrifices to get there.”
At Auburn, Spencer focused on defense, rebounding and physicality before playing a larger role on offense as a pro.
“We gave up a lot,” he said. “You’ve got to sacrifice your game to what fits the team. That’s the sacrifice you have to make if you want to win.”
Win they did. An SEC regular season championship in 2018, Spencer’s junior season, then a program-record 30 victories, including the 2019 SEC Tournament championship leading up to the Final Four.
