Bruce Pearl responds to Charles Barkley picking Alabama to win national championship

Former Auburn Tigers legend and NBA great Charles Barkley committed the cardinal sin against his alma mater. In this year’s NCAA tournament, Barkley has selected Auburn’s biggest rival, Alabama, to win it all. And to make matters worse, the Tigers are also in this year’s tournament. Indeed an injustice such as this has drawn the ire of Tigers’ head coach Bruce Pearl, right? As Auburn prepares for their first-round matchup against Iowa, Pearl addressed Barkley’s pick of Alabama to win the national championship.

“Let me tell you something, Charles Barkley loves the state of Alabama. He loves Auburn first, no question about that,” said Pearl. “He has been pretty loyal to our state. All I have to say about Charles Barkley is he’s going to tell you what he thinks, whether you like it or not. If he said he thinks Alabama is going to win the tournament, he’s not doing it for any other reason than Charles thinks they’re going to win it. I played played against them a couple times, and they are good enough to win it. Nate Oats is one of the best coaches in the country, done an amazing job with this team. They are talented, they are deep, and they play the right way.”

While Barkley might have ruffled a few feathers around his alma mater, Pearl is not worried about that in the slightest. The Tigers head man is focused on what will be a difficult opening matchup against Iowa. The teams will face off in a matchup between 8 and 9 seeds. Ironically enough, they both lost a top-end player in last year’s NBA draft. And both players Keegan Murray and Jabari Smith Jr. were selected with the third and fourth picks, respectively.

CLICK HERE to WIN March Madness Prizes in On3’s Bracket Challenge

Auburn did not have as great a season as their in-state rivals did this year. Alabama finished with the SEC regular season title and followed that up by winning the conference tournament. In contrast, Auburn struggled to find its footing for much of the season, especially in conference play. The Tigers went 10-8 in the conference, a far cry away from the Crimson Tides’ 16-2. and Auburn was also not out of the SEC tournament in the second round by Arkansas.

As Pearl put it, Barkley’s choice has more to do with his love for his home state than anything else. Surely the Auburn legend would love to see his alma mater hoist the national championship trophy at the end of the tournament. But as of now, he is riding with the number one overall seed in the tournament to win it all.