Injuries intensify college basketball court storming debate

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Injuries intensify college basketball court storming debate​

Just over a month after Iowa women's basketball star Catlin Clark collided on the court with an unidentified woman amid an Ohio State victory celebration, Duke's Kyle Filipowski was injured Saturday as a wave of Wake Forest fans rushed their home court after the Demon Deacons' 83-79 defeat of the No. 8 Blue Devils. A fan ran into Filipowski, and the Duke star hobbled off the court with help from teammates. "This gotta change...," Filipowski posted on X after the game. Duke coach Jon Scheyer called for court storming to be banned, and Wake Forest coach Steve Forbes agreed. Siad Scheyer: "How many times does a player have to get into something, where they get punched, or they get pushed, or they get taunted right in their face? It's a dangerous thing."

Official statistics aren't available, but according to an ESPN review, there have been about three court storms a week over the past three months in college basketball. In a three-hour span on Feb. 21, there were episodes in Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Rarely has anyone gotten hurt, but a 2004 court storm resulted in Arizona high school star Joe Kay suffering a stroke that left him paralyzed. Zack Edey, Purdue's 7-foot-4 center and the reigning national player of the year, told ESPN last week that there was "obviously the risk element to it." In his team's 11 road losses the past three seasons, fans stormed 10 times.

On Jan. 23 and Feb. 21, the Kentucky men lost road games, and opposing fans rushed the court. Per Southeastern Conference policy, the Wildcats were two-time recipients of $100,000 from fines the SEC levied against the home teams. In the second one, after an LSU buzzer-beater, Tigers women's basketball star Angel Reese joined members of the student section who stormed and she weighed in on social media: "STORMED THE COURT, GOT KNOCKED DOWN BUT GUESS WHAT??? IT WAS ALL WORTH IT!!! GEAUX TIGERSSSS."

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Duke's Kyle Filipowski still 'sore,' status for Wed. in air​

Duke center Kyle Filipowski avoided major injury but was still "a little bit sore" Monday, two days after a collision with a fan left him hobbled during a court-storming incident following the Blue Devils' loss to Wake Forest on Saturday, head coach Jon Scheyer said. The incident left Filipowski sporting a bag of ice on his right knee after banging that leg into a leg of a fan running by him toward midcourt. Scheyer -- who initially misspoke Saturday when he said Filipowski hurt an ankle -- said Monday that the preseason Associated Press All-American didn't require any type of diagnostic internal imaging for the knee to search for a structural injury. On Monday, Scheyer followed his postgame call to ban court storming with a plea for the ACC to put such a policy in place now, even with Duke down to four regular-season games and only one on the road (at North Carolina State on March 4).

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College coaches, leaders call for court-storming regulations​

On Monday, Jon Scheyer, Bill Self and other college basketball leaders called for a ban on court storming in college basketball due to safety concerns and potential legal impacts for athletes and students. The conversation about court storming escalated over the weekend after Duke star Kyle Fillipowski was bumped by Wake Forest fans who spilled onto the floor following the Demon Deacons' 83-79 win over the Blue Devils on Saturday. That incident unfolded just weeks after a fan ran into women's basketball superstar Caitlin Clark after Iowa's upset loss at Ohio State. On the ACC media teleconference call on Monday, Scheyer said the ACC should implement a court-storming ban now and not wait to address the issue this offseason. He said Filipowski avoided major injury during the court-storming incident but was "a little bit sore" on Monday. Scheyer initially said Filipowski had suffered an ankle injury. The projected lottery pick in this summer's NBA draft was carried off the court by his teammates after the collision.

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Filipowski leads Duke in rout 4 days after court-storming injury​

Kyle Filipowski was back in the starting lineup four days after substaining a knee injury when fans stormed the court and finished with 9 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists as No. 10 Duke beat Louisville 84-59 on Wednesday night. Filipowski, a preseason Associated Press All-American, was hurt following Saturday's loss at Wake Forest when he collided with a fan. Team managers and coaching staff members helped guide the sophomore standout away from the swarming fans and off the court. Filipowski leads Duke with 16.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. He has never missed a game in his two college seasons.

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