Wednesday night's Iron Bowl of Basketball got off to a strange start as an issue with Coleman Coliseum's lighting system caused a brief delay after the game had already begun and Auburn took a 3-0 lead. Ta.

After Alabama's 79-75 win, both coaches had a little fun discussing the Wright debacle.

“I gave Nate a hard time. Look, if you want a new facility, buy a new facility. You don't have to turn out the lights.” – Bruce Pearl at Coleman Coliseum at the start of the game He talked about the lighting failure. pic.twitter.com/KdSkE7YR5L

— Next Round (@NextRoundLive) January 25, 2024

Asked about whether Wright's issues affected the game, Bruce Pearl said it wasn't a factor, but that the match with Nate Oats was a little more fun.

“I gave Nate a hard time. I said, look, if you want a new facility, just buy a new facility. You don't have to turn off the lights,” Pearl joked. Ta.

Nate Oats immediately threw back the sarcasm, saying that even though Auburn shot 20% from the 3-point line, after making the first attempt with the lights out, Auburn was forced to turn the lights out. He sarcastically suggested that he should have asked for it.

Nate Oats said of Auburn's 79-75 win. @abc3340

“We were lucky they didn't shoot well. They shot better with the lights down. Maybe they should have asked for the lights to stay on.” pic.twitter.com/JlxsdLc8eS

— Chris McCulley (@ChrisMcCulleyTV) January 25, 2024

“We were lucky that their shot didn't go well. We should have taken the shot with the lights off. Maybe they should have asked us to keep the lights off, but when we turned them on… And they didn't film much,” Oates said.

Coleman Coliseum has recently come under intense scrutiny as plans to build a new Alabama basketball arena have been repeatedly delayed in recent years.

Coleman has his issues, but Auburn has won just 10 times there, so maybe there's some magic left in the Coliseum.

Michael Brauner is a senior sports analyst and contributing writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP