AUBURN − No matter what happened at Neville Arena, no matter the outcome on Wednesday, Alabama basketball was going to reveal something.

One of two things really. Alabama could show it's as legitimate of an SEC contender as it looks at home, or it could show it still has work to do. The top-20 matchup was essentially a litmus test, and the litmus paper came back bright orange.

The test on the road was tough no doubt, but Alabama nonetheless showed it's got plenty to clean up if it still wants to win the conference title. Auburn cruised past Alabama 99-81 to split the regular-season series. Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears led Alabama with 25 points.

Here are observations and takeaways from the game between No. 11 Auburn (19-4, 8-2 SEC) and No. 16 Alabama (16-7, 8-2).

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Alabama basketball makes run, but Auburn runs better

Seatbelts buckled or not in the first half, all onlookers at Neville Arena experienced a wild ride.

First Auburn put together its run. It jumped out to a 32-18 lead about 10 minutes into the game. Then Alabama returned the favor. It punched back with a 19-4 run over the next few minutes, taking a one-point lead at 37-36. Guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. hitting two triples, and Grant Nelson sinking five free-throws, fueled the run.

Then Auburn had its 19-4 run. The Tigers grabbed a 55-41 lead heading into halftime.

Many of the same problems for Alabama usually created Auburn's runs: Turnovers and issues in transition. Alabama had nine turnovers in the first half, and the Tigers scored 15 points off those turnovers. Then on fast-break points, Auburn outscored Alabama 15-5 before halftime.

"They're making all the tough plays, and we're not," Alabama coach Nate Oats told CTSN at halftime.

Alabama basketball can't match Auburn's interior play

The Tigers' bigs gave Alabama all sorts of problems, particularly on offense. Jaylin Williams and Johni Broome proved tough for the Crimson Tide to stop.

And that shouldn't be too much of a shock. Broome is having a season worthy of national recognition.

Broome scored 24 in 26 minutes, and Williams tallied 26 points over 31 minutes.

Meanwhile, Broome also provided problems for Alabama as a defender. He blocked five shots. Plus, both Broome and Williams were both darn near automatic from the free-throw line. They went a combined 18-for-21.

All in all, Auburn's bigs won the battle for the Tigers and played a vital role in the Auburn victory.

What's next?

Alabama will continue its rematch road trip, heading to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Saturday to face LSU. The Crimson Tide won the first matchup in January at Coleman Coliseum. Then, Alabama will have a week off before it plays host to Texas A&M at home on Feb. 17.

Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Auburn throttles Alabama basketball, splitting regular season series