Auburn basketball and the Tennessee Volunteers became the Saturday heavyweight battle on the hardwood. Both Southeastern Conference rivals entered ranked inside the top 10.

The Tigers had fans posted “WAR DAMN EAGLE” after the game — as Auburn survived 53-51 in a defensive slugfest. Auburn's win surely will shake up the top 10, as the Vols came in ranked No. 6 overall.

It wasn't just fans posting their excitement for Auburn's victory. Even famous alums chimed in. Major League Baseball legend Frank Thomas, who once nearly played football for Auburn, took to X to sound off on the win.

“What a war that was! Big Victory War Damn Eagle!” Thomas posted.

Even the Auburn X account couldn't help but bold those three words as well.

Auburn resorted to a down-and-dirty side to prevail at home. The Tigers struggled to deliver a high-scoring effort. But showcased their gritty side in topping Tennessee.

How Auburn outgunned No. 6 Tennessee on the court

Auburn Tigers guard Chad Baker-Mazara (10) and Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) fight for a loose ball as Auburn Tigers take on Tennessee Volunteers at Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala., on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025.
Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK

Dylan Cardwell set the tone at Neville Arena. He grabbed an offensive rebound, then turned around to throw down a slam dunk in the first 11 seconds of play.

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Tennessee didn't score until the 17:55 mark of the first, when Zakai Zeigler made his first two free throw attempts. Both teams, however, delivered scoring slumps. And the biggest lead was only six during the first half. Auburn ended up taking the 22-20 halftime lead.

Both SEC foes ended up scoring the same number of points in the second half at 31. Tennessee, though, took a late 51-47 lead with 2:07 left.

Tahaad Pettiford sparked the final scoring charge on Auburn's side. He banked a two-point jumper with 1:50 to go to cut the lead to 51-49.

Zeigler then missed a layup opportunity for the Vols. The ball landed into the hands of Auburn. Miles Kelly nailed his three pointer to lift the Tigers ahead 52-51 — and got the home crowd cheering loudly on their feet. Pettiford hit one last free throw from the white stripe with 13 seconds left.

Zeigler raced down the other side to fire one last long range attempt. Johni Broome collected the rebound, however, and Auburn celebrated the gutsy win.

The Tigers won even with only two players hitting double figures for points. Broome led the way with 16 points off the bench. Starter Chaney Johnson tacked on 10 points. Pettiford added eight on the evening. Chad Baker-Mazara chipped in seven on the scoring end.

Auburn cleaned up the glass, though. The Tigers outrebounded the Vols 41-37. The Tigers even denied the points in astonishing fashion — blocking nine total shot attempts. Broome swatted four Tennessee shots. Baker-Mazara led the starters with two blocks. Johnson, Miles Kelly and Dylan Cardwell each blocked one basket.

Auburn improves to 18-1 overall and will keep its place atop the national rankings.