Wake Forest’s upset win over Duke was overshadowed by the fans injuring Kyle Filipowski as they stormed the court.
Filipowski collided with a fan before nearly getting destroyed by a stampede. The initial collision was ugly to say the least.
Several fans were already on the court at LJVM Coliseum before the final buzzer went off. Even if Filipowski ran to the bench, there’s a good chance he wouldn’t have made it in time.
The replay from this Saturday’s ugly scene makes it seem like one of the Wake Forest fans initiated contact with Filipowski. That fan eventually hit the deck because they lost their balance.
I mean, this first Wake student clearly tried to hit/whack Filipowski with his left hand.
Dumb dumb.
— Jake Marsh (@PMTsportsbiz) February 24, 2024
Duke head coach Jon Scheyer was understandably frustrated in his postgame press conference.
“Disappointed we lost. But look, for me, I’m more concerned about the well-being of our guys,” Scheyer said. “Flip sprains his ankle. When are we going to ban court-storming? When are we going to ban that? 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.
It’ll be fascinating to see how the NCAA responds to this incident.
As for Filipowski, we’re hoping he makes a speedy recovery.