For now, though, Alabama is looking to defend its home court while handing Auburn just its third loss of the season. And the scene inside Coleman Coliseum more than an hour before tipoff was understandably electric. Students showed up en masse, packing the student section for what’s arguably the game of the year in college basketball.

Seen as the future of the WR position at both Texas A&M and Texas Tech, Elko & Co. are concerned they may lose one of the star WR transfers they brought in this offseason through the portal.

This week's Starting Five previewing the men's college basketball weekend has a huge SEC showdown and three other games matching ranked opponents.

Alabama fell to No. 4, followed by Houston, Tennessee, Texas A&M — with its highest ranking since December 2017 — Iowa State, Texas Tech and St. John’s to round out the top 10.