Let's start with the fact that the University Of Texas is NEVER coming back to Lubbock (and it's probably best that they won't). Some fans at Tuesday's game got a little out of control.

Poor Sportsmanship

I think the first thing we need to establish is that the Red Raider Basketball team shouldn't suffer because some of their fans are poor sports. Let's also remember that United Supermarkets Arena also holds over 15,000 people. The actions of a few shouldn't reflect on the crowd as a whole either. With all of that said, I hope the people caught throwing items picked up a lifetime ban. I know people love to talk about a "passionate" fan base, but you can be passionate without being a jerk.

The Outrage

You can see straight up from the video that a flagrant foul was committed by Texas. There is NO DOUBT that the foul was the kindling for the whole place to catch on fire. That player was rightfully ejected from the game and his coach needs to talk to him about this kind of aggressive behavior (Maybe they should institute NIL penalties). The follow-up to that foul by some in the crowd was completely unacceptable. As for actual Texas Tech players, they immediately moved to chill the situation and should be commended (I'm not sure I would have been so calm).

Watch Closely

Also, watch when the announcers start talking about "water bottles" being thrown onto the court. One of those "water bottles" was clearly a mini bottle of Fireball, so boozing may have been a factor as well. I guess it's impossible to catch all of the alcohol people sneak into venues, but I'm betting there will be a bigger clampdown on everyone in the future.

Grow Up A Little

I guess when you're a kid (that's one of the people I saw being dragged off) you still believe that ball games are some type of life-or-death situation and that you have to "fight", sometimes literally, for your team. Hopefully, all of the people who were acting up, regardless of age, will realize that your rivals are only rivals and not mortal enemies. I also hope they recognize that their actions had nothing but negative effects on the team they thought they were fighting for.

Here's The Video From ESPN: