Tense Iron Bowl vibes extended to the hardwood on Thursday as the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers basketball teams met for an exhibition game. Despite the relatively low stakes of the game, things got heated with players needing to be separated while angry coaches appeared to exchange words. Then after the game ended a brawl nearly broke out before cooler heads prevailed.
The trouble started early as Auburn’s Thomas Dowd tried to wrestle a rebound away from Alabama’s Keitenn Bristow. Both players crashed to the ground with Dowd appearing to hit his head on the court. Neither player let go as teammates surrounded them and referees tried to get them to stop fighting over the ball. That’s when the pushing started and coaches had to run in.
An upset Nate Oats seemed to point towards the other end of the court to tell Steven Pearl to get back to his own bench. As Pearl walked away he appeared to be amused and played to the crowd.
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Tempers flaring in the Auburn-Alabama exhibition game in Birmingham… Iron Bowl animosity on full display. 🍿👀 https://t.co/FT0TiXDIsc
— Vince Wolfram (@vincewolfram15) October 23, 2026
Things escalated again as the final buzzer sounded and for a moment it seemed like there would be disaster, but players were separated before any punches were thrown.
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Things got chippy yet again after Alabama beat Auburn in an exhibition game It just means more. Literally. https://t.co/XJYliL76ia
— Cole Adams (@coleadamss) October 23, 2026
The schools are scheduled to resume their rivalry on Jan. 30, 2027 and then play again at the end of the regular season on March 6. The Crimson Tide have won three straight, six of their last eight and lead the all-time series, 105-69.
Their football teams will play in Tuscaloosa on Nov. 28 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama has won six consecutive Iron Bowls.
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