Tensions Flare in Auburn’s Preseason Iron Bowl Matchup With Alabama

There may have been some concerns about the heart and fight of the Auburn Tigers after their first exhibition matchup with Florida State, but it didn’t take them long to prove those concerns to be false. In the Tigers’ second preseason matchup against the Alabama Crimson Tide, tensions flared, resulting in a benches-clearing scuffle between the Tigers and the Tide.

The altercation began just under five minutes into the game after Auburn forward Thomas Dowd and Alabama forward Keitenn Bristow got tangled up on a rebound, resulting in a chippy interaction between the two that spilled over onto the rest of the court.

By the time the referees were able to get things settled down, both benches had fully cleared, with Auburn head coach Steven Pearl and Alabama head coach Nate Oats even coming face to face in what seemed to be a heated exchange. 

Auburn’s George Kimble and Kevin Overton, along with Alabama’s Amari Allen and Brandon Garrison, were given technical fouls for the interaction. 

The Tigers and Tide have one of the most famous rivalries in sports, so it comes as little surprise that the two teams have already gotten chippy, even in a preseason matchup. If anything, this should have fans of both teams excited for their matchups later in the year, as the two groups are clearly passionately invested in taking down their biggest foes.

The Tigers responded quite well after the altercation, bringing a higher level of energy to the court than they had against Florida State, resulting in a higher-scoring half than in their first showing against the Seminoles. The Tigers put up 41 points in the first half of the Iron Bowl, as opposed to 37 against the Noles.

The extra aggression seemed to help on the rebounding front, as well. The Tigers had 20 rebounds at the half against Florida State, who had 28 rebounds at the half, but in the Iron Bowl, the Tigers had 27 rebounds at the half to Alabama’s 22. 

The Tigers would likely benefit from keeping this level of aggression throughout the season, as it seems to have produced immediate results on the court. However, they will need to do so while also keeping their emotions in check, or the Tigers could find themselves without a key player or two due to technical fouls or ejections.

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