A basketball referee was injured and eight players were tossed after a wild brawl during a Sun Belt Tournament game in Pensacola, Florida.
At least three players from South Alabama have been suspended for their next game as a result of Wednesday’s brawl.
There were under six minutes left in the fourth quarter when South Alabama’s Cordasia Harris and Coastal Carolina’s Tracey Hueston began fighting under the basket on Wednesday night.
Harris appeared to bump Hueston slightly from behind before Hueston turned around and began swinging at Harris, who returned fire.
Two referees, multiple teammates and staff members quickly worked to separate the women and a referee was knocked to the ground. The referee appeared to be hit in the head or neck area by Hueston while attempting to push her away from Harris.
The referee remained on the ground while order was restored and multiple medical staffers tended to her on the court.
There were under six minutes left in the fourth quarter when South Alabama’s Cordasia Harris and Coastal Carolina’s Tracey Hueston began fighting under the basket in Pensacola
One official was knocked to the court and required medical attention on Wednesday
A sheriff’s deputy also came onto the court after the fight ended.
There was no immediate update on the referee’s condition.
Hueston and Harris were both given technical fouls and ejected, along with six other players who participated in the fight.
South Alabama won the game 80-70.
Since then, the Sun Belt has suspended Sutton, Daniela Gonzalez and Cordasia Harris for Thursday’s game against Texas State.
A South Alabama coach was seen trying to block her players from running back to the melee
South Alabama director of athletics Dr. Joel Erdmann has objected to that decision in a statement.
‘I am the first to acknowledge that college basketball officials have an extremely challenging and thankless job,’ Erdmann wrote. ‘We are greatly concerned about the official that was injured during the game.
‘However, after an extensive internal review, I do not believe the actions of all three of our student-athletes rose to the level of being classified as fighting as defined by the NCAA rule book. This judgement has negatively impacted the tournament experience of our suspended student-athletes and stripped them of limited opportunities to compete in the postseason.’
Although Erdmann disagreed with the decision, he wrote the school has accepted the penalty.
