Nate Oats and Alabama will look to make it 2 straight against Auburn in the Iron Bowl of basketball on Wednesday night on The Plains as the Crimson Tide are ranked No. 16 in the latest AP Top 25, while Auburn is No. 12.

Oats said Tuesday that Neville Arena is so loud, it reminds him of small high school gyms that pack in 2,000 people. “That place is loud,” he said.

Alabama leads the SEC with an 8-1 record in conference play, ahead of South Carolina and Auburn, which are tied at 7-2, and Tennessee sits at 6-2. The Tide beat Auburn in Tuscaloosa on Jan. 24, 79-75.

“It can all go backwards in a hurry if we don’t play well,” Oats said.

Echoing comments Oats and Auburn’s Bruce Pearl made before the first game, Oats Tuesday said, “This game has become a national-level game. Not just a big game in the state of Alabama but a big game in the state of college basketball.”

Oats also announced that recently-suspended Nick Pringle is back with the team, and will play at Auburn.