People are fed up after the latest court-storming incident.
Grant Hughes
Duke starKyle Filipowski"injured his knee" and required help off the court after he collidedwith a Wake Forest fan following the Demon Deacons' 83-79 win in Winston Salem. The incident resulted in an outcry from national voices, with many arguing that college basketball should ban court-storming entirely.
"I felt a bunch of hits on my body," Filipowski said after the game. "It's really ridiculous with how that situation is handled. Iabsolutely feel like it was personal, intentional, for sure. There's no reason why they should see a big guy like me trying to work my way off the court, and they can't work around me. There's no excuse for that."
Court-stormings are a controversial topic among college basketball coaches. Purdue coachMatt Paintermade his frustrations known after Nebraska upset his Boilermakers in January. Iowa women's basketball star Caitlin Clark also had a highly-publicized collision with a fan after the Hawkeyes' loss to Ohio State last month.
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Hereis the reaction after the Duke-Wake Forest court-storming:
Jon Scheyer demands college basketball to ban court-storming
— Will Dalton (@thewilldalton) February 24, 2024“When are we going to ban court storming?”
Jon Scheyer on Kyle Filipowski spraining his ankle in the court storming at Wake Forest, and he also points to what happened to Caitlin Clark at Ohio State, a month ago. pic.twitter.com/VCdMJXRywl
“I am disappointed we lost but I am more concerned about the well-being of our guys,” Scheyer said after the game. “When are we going to ban court-storming? It’s a dangerous thing. I don’t want that to take away from the game that Wake played. But this has happened to us a bunch this year. That needs to stop."
Scheyer said in his postgame press conference that Filipowski injured his ankle. The Duke star clarified that it was actually a knee injury to reporters.
Filipowski said the incident was 'intentional and personal'
"I absolutely feel like it was personal, intentional for sure." @DukeMBB's Kyle Filipowski after today's loss to Wake Forest where fans rushed the court. HC Jon Scheyer said Filipowski was injured as he was trying to leave the court. @WFMY @SilkyGilkey pic.twitter.com/jQdzRub0Ng
— Brian Hall (@bhallwfmy) February 24, 2024
Filipowski toldlocal CBS TV affiliate WFMY that he felt like he was targeted during the court storm.
"I absolutely feel like it was personal and intentional for sure," Filipowski said. "There's no reason where they see a big guy like me trying to work my way off the court and can't just work their way around me. There's no excuse for that."
Steve Forbes 'doesn't like court-stormings'
"Flip is a handful ... I didn't see what happened at the end. I hope he's OK. I don't like court stormings. ... You just don't feel safe." - Steve Forbes
— Conor O'Neill (@ConorONeill_DI) February 24, 2024
“I didn’t see what happened at the end," Forbes added. "I hope he’s OK. I have been a part of them before as a coach and you just don’t feel safe. I’m sure the next time that happens, we’ll do a better job of taking care of that situation.”
Should court-storming be put to an end?
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 24, 2024Kyle Filipowski just got injured during Wake’s court storm ?
Should this be the END of court storms? pic.twitter.com/QqcLIPqWNT
This is some bullsh*t https://t.co/TqNdPva6WM
— Adam Rowe? (@AdamRoweTDD) February 24, 2024
The Athletic's Brendan Marks claimedFilipowski got "completely turned around, possibly hit in the face in addition to the lower body" during the rush and joined the chorus of national voices who criticized the act of court-storming after games.
"That should not happen. That right there is why court-storming should not happen," ESPN's Mike Monaco said during the broadcast.
It was 'always trending towards this direction'
"There are actually people who have stormed a court and been seriously injured during that. ... It just didn't happen on CBS or ESPN so it didn't register nationally. ... Even if [Kyle Filipowski is] okay, it is clear he could not have been and that's why we have to put an end to… pic.twitter.com/jZJlN952K8
— CBS Sports College Basketball ? (@CBSSportsCBB) February 24, 2024
“We were always trending towards this direction where somebody of importance and somebody from one of the biggest brands in college basketball was going to be injured in a court-storming," CBS Sports Gary Parish said. "You’re not allowed to run onto the court in an NBA game. Same thing for NFL and MLB. Why do we think this is OK?”
Fans do not belong on the court -- ever
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 24, 2024It also looks like the fan went flying to the floor in the middle of the stampede. Incredibly dangerous.
Seriously, enough already. Fans do not belong on the court. Ever. https://t.co/NLu8PXueKG
"Kyle Filipowski had a collision with a fan during the court storm and had to be hobbled off the court,"CBS Sports' Seth Davis posted to social mediaafter the incident. "TERRIBLE job by Wake Forest to protect the players. This is why court storms need to stop. Hope he's okay."
ESPN just showed a new angle of the court-storming at Wake Forest where Duke's Kyle Filipowski was injured. Can clearly see where he hurts his knee as a fan taunts him while racing to midcourt. Unbelievable. pic.twitter.com/ABAsKC2kTI
— Kyle Boone (@kyletheboone) February 24, 2024
"Wake Forest University knows that if the Deacs win the game, the fans will storm the court," Seth Davis added. "It's their responsibility to make sure the opposing players and coaches get off safely. Where was the security? It's a shame that this mars what was a terrific win by that team."
OVERHEAD ANGLE HAS FANS QUESTIONING IF FILIPOWSKI INITIATED CONTACT
Guys. He didn’t initiate the contact. Cmon. Stop with that. https://t.co/Tm4M2csiM5
— Rob Dauster (@RobDauster) February 24, 2024
Wake Forest fans and Duke detractors on social media started to claim that Filipowski was the one who initiated contact with the Demon Deacons fan after ESPN released an overhead angle of the incident. Several media members were quick to defend the Duke star.
Court storming out of control at Wake in victory vs @DukeMBB as star Kyle Filipowski injured . pic.twitter.com/kVbxM6uQAT
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) February 24, 2024
