This is an opinion column.

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Will Auburn’s Chad Baker-Mazara bring his game or his cheap shots to Nashville for the SEC tournament? The mailbag is all elbows after Alabama’s 93-91 victory against Auburn.

Rasta in Lower Alabama writes …

One: Chad Baker-Mazara constantly flopping, not only is it annoying, but it turns a two-hour game into an extra 45 minutes because of all the “official reviews “ of either him flopping more than a Brazilian soccer player or because of an elbow he had thrown, slap to the face, etc … No doubt he is talented and can win games for ya, but at the flip of a switch he can turn into his own worst enemy.

Two: Rebounds … rebounds … [freaking] REBOUNDS!!!! That’s all I heard about the past two losses (same against the Gators). Second-chance points have now become our opponents strategy, shoot from anywhere, and they will easily get a put back.

Three: HUSTLE!!! Yes we have gotten lazy going for the ball.

Four: FREE THROWS!!! Yup, shooting 64 percent will not win a championship or close game, or maybe that’s why the game was close. How can the “player of the year” go 2-of-5 from the charity stripe, or the five-star, McDonald’s kid, who can rain 3’s but goes 1-of-3 from the free-throw line in the waning minutes of a game that ends up in OT?

Matt writes …

Obviously, the Tide was overdue for a big performance. Winning a road game on the last shot in overtime is big enough, but the fact that it was Auburn (and they were ranked number one) makes it even bigger. A lot of good things can happen for UA coming off that victory.

Side note: Has your view of Baker-Mazara changed after his deliberate elbow to the back of Youngblood‘s head? Is he still your favorite player?

Hartley in Harrisburg, N.C. writes …

Joe, I can’t wait to read your excuse for that horrible flagrant-2 foul by your favorite player, Chad Baker-Mazara! I guess the refs were out to get him as you have claimed in a previous article. His flagrant foul has NO place in a basketball game and it most likely cost Auburn a victory just like it did against Yale last year!

Pam writes …

I don’t find a lot of fault in your article regarding Auburn’s Chad Baker-Mazara and the recent game. However, having watched Alabama’s Youngblood in games with other teams, he’s a dirty player and no one ever reports on that. He obviously took a shot in the back (kidney shot) of CBM in the recent game…no foul. The incident happened in full view of those of us up in our section. Perhaps we had a better view than the refs or the camera….just like we did of Sears clearly stepping out of bounds before he handed off to a teammate for a 3-point shot. I guess the ref watching the line must have blinked.

A friend, who’s a better fan than I, ran into Younglood’s family as they were leaving the game. Only knowing they were wearing crimson and could possibly be a player’s family, she congratulated them on the win and asked if they had a son on the team. When they responded it was Youngblood, she said she was sorry he got his eye hurt in the game. Their response left her wondering if his job in the game was to get CBM out of the game. When she told me that Sunday, I found it interesting since I had commented on that very thing only minutes before he was successful in his task.

I know I see things through orange and blue glasses, but to imply AUBURN is too dirty to win a championship when only one player who is too emotional for his own good is the issue is unfair. As a whole, to watch Johni Broome get battered over and over under the basket with no call by the refs and to see the sportsmanship of Dylan Cardwell who takes foul calls from refs for standing straight and tall, feet on the floor, arms raised in defense, only to move on to the next play…certainly they and their other teammates do not deserve to be labeled as dirty. Let’s try reporting more on the positive and less on the negative to accomplish fair and honest reporting.

ANSWER: First, it’s not my job to be “positive.” It’s my job to write the truth. I know that we as a collective Southern consciousness have mastered the art of passive aggressiveness — an Auburn friend heard from a friend who implied that maybe Alabama is dirty, too! — but, bless our hearts, someone has to tell it like it is.

Yes, it was absolutely Youngblood’s job to target Baker-Mazara with contact in the hopes of Baker-Mazara doing something stupid. It was expected and it’s going to happen in every game for Baker-Mazara for the rest of his career. Baker-Mazara understands this, but apparently he doesn’t care or just can’t help himself.

Johni Broome said that he hopes Baker-Mazara learns from his mistakes, but CBM is 25 years old. I’m not sure that there’s anything left to learn. Baker-Mazara’s on-court behavior has actually gotten worse over the last few weeks. It’s not a positive trend for the Auburn basketball Tigers.

But CBM’s lack of discipline isn’t the only thing bothering Auburn going into the SEC tournament. Auburn’s defense has been a couple steps too slow in his last two games. Have the Tigers been resting up for March Madness, or is it something else?

Flipping the switch defensively is a risky bet for single-elimination scenarios. Auburn allowed 52 rebounds against Alabama and Broome even mentioned after the loss to the Tide that it was uncharacteristic for him to go two games in a row without a double-double in points and boards.

Did Auburn’s recent lack of focus on the defensive end manifest itself in other areas? Look no further than the free-throw percentage as proof.

Free throws are a mental game, plain and simple. Auburn has hovered around 90 percent from the line this season, but shot 64 percent (11 of 17) against Alabama. Broome (2 of 5) was off and so was freshman Tahaad Pettiford (3 of 5). Expect the mental sharpness to return in Nashville.

As for the sharp elbows, let’s hope those stay in Auburn.

Side note answer: Yes, Baker-Mazara is still my favorite player.

Side note Part 2: We’re looking for thoughtful basketball questions for a mailbag ahead of the SEC tournament. Don’t disappoint.

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Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of the book “We Want Bama: A Season of Hope and the Making of Nick Saban’s Ultimate Team.”