NCAA Tournament Refs Deserve Credit For Elite Fight Breakup Between BYU-Duquesne

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The beauty of March Madness and the NCAA Tournament are the upsets. There's nothing quite like seeing a lower-seeded team come out hot and slay a giant in the first round. With an upset brewing between #11 Duquesne and #6 BYU, tempers flared in the second half. 

The Dukes got into the tournament by making an improbable run to win the Atlantic 10 tournament. They won four games in four days, including knocking out the conference's #1 seed, Dayton. They entered with some of the strongest momentum in the country. 

BYU got an at-large bid after losing in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament to Texas Tech. The Cougars posted a strong net rating on the season, but went just 5-4 in their last nine games entering the Big Dance. 

The momentum advantage for Duquesne showed itself early. They scored nine points before BYU even made its first shot. BYU briefly took its first lead of the game in the middle of the first half before Duquesne immediately responded and eventually stretched its lead to double-digits in the second half. 

During a battle for a rebound in the second half, Cougars forward Noah Waterman and Dukes forward Fousseyni Drame tried to wrestle the ball away from one another. The two went to the floor and despite referees quickly blowing their whistles and calling a jump ball, the pair continued to fight on the ground. 

Fousseyni Drame of the Duquesne Dukes and Noah Waterman of the BYU Cougars fight for a rebound during the second half of an NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game in Omaha, Nebraska.

Fousseyni Drame of the Duquesne Dukes and Noah Waterman of the BYU Cougars fight for a rebound during the second half of an NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game in Omaha, Nebraska. 

(Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

It appeared that the two were headed for a very, very physical altercation, but two NCAA Tournament referees immediately reacted, diving to the floor to separate the players from one another before the tussle turned into something much more vicious.

Referees assessed a double technical, calling both Drame and Waterman each for a foul, though it looked like Drame was much more the aggressor. Still, the officials probably wanted to dissuade further action by either player. 

NCAA Tournament referees are inevitably going to face negative press for poor calls throughout the Big Dance. So, let's take this opportunity to give them some credit for a job well done in this situation.

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to Outkick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named “Brady” because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.