Kansas and Kansas State Brawl in a Blowout

That late point did not affect betting on the game. Kansas easily covered the 14½-point spread and the game went well over the total of 126 points.

Jeff Long, the athletic director for Kansas, said the schools and conference would review the brawl to determine consequences, saying, “There is no place for this conduct in college athletics.”

As is often the case, the brawl was the result of several moments that built on one another. De Sousa may have expected to dribble out the game, only to be unexpectedly stripped. Gordon may have expected an easy layup, only to be blocked. The elation or disappointment of a blowout game against a rival may have fueled emotions.

Kansas Coach Bill Self did not object to the steal that began the sequence of events.

“If you have the lead and the other team quits guarding, obviously you don’t go score,” he said. But “if the team is behind,” as Kansas State was, “I don’t think you should take total offense to anything.”

“Certainly the way Silvio reacted to him taking his ball, going down and blocking the shot, that’s all fair game,” Self added. “What transpired after that is obviously what set everything off.”

De Sousa was playing in the game only because he won an appeal of a suspension with the N.C.A.A. A consultant for Adidas had testified that he made payments to De Sousa’s guardian to encourage him to play for Kansas. De Sousa sat out last season before winning his appeal, shortening a two-season suspension to one year.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/sports/kansas-state-brawl.html?emc=rss&partner=rss