By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-20 19:46:51 | Updated at 2025-03-21 11:54:57
16 hours ago
Police in Lexington, Kentucky are searching for a fan who threw a water bottle onto the court in the opening game of March Madness on Thursday.
According to those on the broadcast, it appeared to come from a Louisville fan - whose team was losing late in their game against Creighton.
With less than five minutes remaining in the contest, Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey began barking at referee Brooks Wells for what he believed was a missed foul call on Creighton point guard Steven Ashworth.
Kelsey stepped out onto the court at Rupp Arena on the campus of the University of Kentucky to yell at Wells - who immediately assessed him a technical foul.
The first-year Louisville coach couldn't control himself further and continued to scream at the officiating crew.
It was then that irate fans began taking matters into their own hands. While the technical was being assessed, a yet-to-be-identified fan threw a full bottle of water over the Creighton bench and onto the court.
Louisville coach Pat Kelsey got a technical foul which led to a strange series of events
After the foul was called, Kelsey was seen screaming at official Brooks Wells
A fan then threw a full water bottle onto the court in anger, which led to a prolonged cleanup
The water bottle flew 'from the Louisville side' and over the Creighton bench
Broadcaster Jim Jackson said that it appeared to have come 'from the Louisville side' of the arena. The sound of the water bottle hitting the court could be heard on the broadcast.
That incident led to a prolonged stoppage as arena crew members wiped the floor clean of all liquid to prevent any slips from players.
Meanwhile, arena officials and police began searching for the perpetrator of the bottle-tossing. Neither Lexington Police nor University of Kentucky Police have commented on the matter publicly.
Fans reacted - calling out the poor sportsmanship as the Cardinals were losing late to the Bluejays.
'Whoever threw the water bottle is a clown,' wrote one user on X, formerly Twitter.
Another fan said, 'Stay trashy. They deserved to lose with this kind of attitude.'
One Kentucky fan took the chance to twist the knife into their rivals, saying, 'Louisville fans showing their true colors today. At least they got to look at some real Championship banners for a change.'
'More importantly, my bracket is now worthless,' wrote one particularly jaded fan.
Creighton's athletic director posted a picture of the bottle with a caption after his team's win
Jamiya Neal led Creighton in scoring with 29 points and 12 rebounds to advance in the bracket
The action was likely just as much anger at the result of the game as it was the Kelsey technical foul as Louisville got embarrassed by Creighton.
Despite a 'home court advantage' by playing in their home state, Louisville ended up losing 89-75 in a game which wasn't particularly close at the half.
After the win, Creighton athletics director Marcus Blossom also posted a picture that he took with the water bottle with the caption, 'What a win! Nothing could stop these Jays today - not even this projective! On to the round of 32!'
Creighton's X-factor Jamiya Neal dropped a double-double of 29 points and 12 rebounds while Ashworth knocked down four 3-pointers to finish with 22 points, five boards, and five assists.
Louisville also had two 20-point scorers in Chucky Hepburn (22) and Terrence Edwards Jr (21) but the team shot 42 percent from the field compared to Creighton's 57 percent.
The Cardinals, who were widely seen as an under-seeded team considering their success in the regular season, are now finished.
Creighton now faces the winner of the game between Auburn and Alabama State at the same arena in two days.
