Ex-Cat Booker vs. ex-Card Dieng in NBA fight? ‘I love Devin like a brother ... but I got Gorgui.’

After a dustup between former Kentucky Wildcat Devin Booker and former Louisville Cardinal Gorgui Dieng on Tuesday night threatened to escalate from ejections on the court into a fight in the tunnel, Karl-Anthony Towns, who has played with both, had an idea who would come out on top if the two actually squared off.

“I love Devin like a brother … but I got Gorgui,” said Towns in a postgame interview after Minnesota’s 118-91 win over Booker’s Phoenix Suns.

For the record, Dieng is listed at 6-foot-11, 252 pounds, while Booker is listed at 6-6, 210. Towns and Booker were teammates at UK in the Cats’ 38-1 Final Four season of 2014-15. Dieng player for Louisville from 2010 to 2013 and has been Towns’ Minnesota teammate since Towns joined the league.

In the third quarter Tuesday, Dieng gathered a loose ball in the lane and swung his arms to clear space, catching Booker with an elbow to his left jaw and knocking him to the ground. Dieng was called for a foul.

Booker and Dieng exchanged a few words before the ensuing inbounds play and stepped to each other for a closer confrontation. Booker reached up with a half-slap, half-shove to Dieng’s face that ignited a small scrum on the court and double technicals for each player.

As each walked off the court Dieng signaled to Booker with a gesture that appeared to be a challenge to meet in the tunnel to continue the “discussion.” Both took off toward the back, Booker with a Phoenix staffer tugging on his shorts to keep him from getting back to Dieng.

According to reports, security kept the two from reaching each other. Dieng described what led up to the ejections.

“I wasn’t even talking to him. I was talking to the ref. … And he talked to me,” Dieng said after the game. “I talked to him back. We exchanged words there. I think he tried to hit me. Everybody can see I was clear. I wasn’t trying to throw a punch. He tried to hit me and I just laugh it off, because I know a lot of guys in this league think they are tough.”

As for the supposed challenge to meet in the back, Dieng smiled broadly as he said “I just wanted to exchange jerseys with him, nothing else.”