Auburn arrived in Houston without the two players, who got into an altercation during the flight

On Friday, the Auburn men’s basketball team experienced an unusual situation when an altercation between two players resulted in the team plane turning around mid-flight. Auburn, ranked No. 11 in the AP poll, was on track to face No. 4 Houston, with the game scheduled to take place Saturday night.

The two players, identified as freshman Jahki Howard and senior Ja’Heim Hudson according to multiple reports, were left behind when the team traveled to Houston later Friday. Both Howard and Hudson are reserves, but they played significant minutes in Auburn’s season opener against Vermont earlier this week.

The physical altercation, initially classified as “horse play,” was so serious that the pilots decided to abandon the flight plan. The flight reportedly traveled for 45 minutes before heading back home.

Air traffic control audio indicates that a pilot told air traffic controllers that “we have a lot of basketball players fighting” while still in Alabama airspace. Pilots told air traffic controllers that “clothes were torn” during the altercation and that police were on the ground when the plane landed.

Auburn University has not yet released an official statement regarding the incident.

The Tigers and Cougars will face off at 9:30 p.m. ET at Toyota Center, home of the Houston Rockets.