Bruce Pearl reflects on importance of No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup against Alabama

Auburn solidified itself as the No. 1 team in the country after beating No. 2 Alabama 94-85 in Tuscaloosa on Saturday afternoon.

The game marked just the sixth time in history that two teams ranked No. 1 and 2 in the same state met during the regular season. To Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl, that meant almost as much to him as securing the victory.

“I think the thing I’m proudest of is that all eyes of college basketball were on the state of Alabama and the SEC. What this conference has done in men’s basketball is historic. And, you know, you never know whether or not a game can live up to the hype,” Pearl said. “We were very prepared. The coaches did a great job with the game plan. The kids executed early. You’ve got to play well early if you’re going to win on the road.

“We played well early. As you’d expected, Alabama came storming back, and the place was––I’ve never heard Coleman this loud. But it was a really clean game. It was a really clean game, which I was pleased about. Nate talked to his team about that, because that’s how the No. 1 teams in the country should act. That’s how they should compete. That’s how they should play. I was really pleased with that.”

It wasn’t the first time that Pearl had coached in a game under similar circumstances. In 2008, his No. 2 Tennessee Volunteers travelled to Memphis to take on John Calipari’s Tigers. Tennessee beat Memphis 66-62 on the road, and ESPN broadcaster Dan Shulman said that the matchup was one of the loudest that he’s even been a part of.

But Saturday’s game between Auburn and Alabama may have been more personal. Before these two programs did battle in the Iron Bowl on the gridiron in November, legendary Crimson Tide football coach Nick Saban said that when you’re born into the state of Alabama, you have a “birthright.” Either Auburn or Alabama. “You grow up that way with great passion,” Saban said.

To have this type of matchup, even in college basketball, against the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country is massive not only for the state of basketball in Alabama, but tips the cap to the investments made by the Southeastern Conference within the sport over the last decade.

These two programs will match up one more time before the end of the regular season. Whether it’s another 1-2 matchup remains to be seen, but Auburn will look to sweep the two-game series when the Crimson Tide travel to Neville Arena on March 8.