Article by Mihai Șovei – Published on Thursday, 05 March 2026, 10:50 / Updated on Thursday, 05 March 2026 11:01
Unbelievable scenes of violence marked a US women's college basketball championship game Wednesday night, where a general brawl between South Alabama and Coastal Carolina players degenerated into total chaos.
The aftermath of the conflict was shocking: seven basketball players were eliminated, and a referee was knocked out.
PHOTO. All-out brawl at a women's basketball game
The incident occurred five minutes before the end of the game when a verbal dispute between Coastal Carolina's Tracey Houston and South Alabama's Cordasia Harris escalated into a physical altercation. Quickly, other players on the field and on the bench, as well as some members of the technical staff, got involved in the fight, creating general chaos.
Trying to separate the parties involved, one of the referees was hit hard and lay on the floor, knocked out in the middle of the fight. Footage of this incident quickly spread across social media.
The disciplinary measures were drastic. No less than seven South Alabama basketball players were suspended, while from the Coastal Carolina team only Houston, the one that started the conflict, was sanctioned. According to the official website of the competition, the official injured in the incident left the match, was evaluated by the medical staff and discharged.
Although South Alabama eventually won 80-70 and advanced to the third round of the championship, it remains to be seen how it will approach the game against Texas State. With the rules requiring automatic suspension for engaging in a brawl, the winning team will be without almost the entire top five and without key reserves.
Video of the moment:
Coastal Carolina and South Alabama just got into it in the Sun Belt women's tournament and knocked the referee out cold 😳pic.twitter.com/HM1VDFrORD
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 4, 2026
