Kyle Filipowski recalled seeing the footage of Iowa women’s basketball player Caitlin Clark being accidentally knocked down by a fan who stormed the court after her team suffered a painful defeat.
About a month later, Duke’s seven-foot-tall star was part of the same discussion about the dangers of storming the court, wrapping his right leg in plastic to attach an ice pack to his kneecap. And he wasn’t happy about what had just happened.
“Just like any other disrupted game where the fans run onto the field, hell goes crazy,” Filipowski said after stumbling in a collision with an onrushing fan after the eighth-ranked Blue Devils lost at Wake Forest on Saturday. “I’m just trying to get off the field, and you know, you’ve got these crazy students who just do what they want. It has to be a little more protective when things like that happen.â€
The Clark incident, which occurred Jan. 21 after then-No. want to celebrate at midcourt.
It has long been considered a rite of passage and part of the fabric of college athletics, especially in a sport that captures the national spotlight every year with the March Madness spectacle during the NCAA tournament. Still, Saturday marked the final incident of the potentially combustible combination created by fans venturing between the lines of athletes all the way to the final horn, this time involving an Associated Press preseason All-American.
“When are we going to ban court rushes?,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. ‘So, when are we going to ban that? How many times does a player have to step into something where he gets punched, pushed or yelled at to his face? It’s a dangerous thing.â€
Later Saturday night, Wake Forest director of athletics John Currie issued a statement saying he expressed “regret” for the incident to Duke athletic director Nina King and to Paul Brazeau, senior associate commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
“While our event management staff and security had been practicing post-match procedures to protect the visiting team and officials, we clearly need to do better,” Currie said.
The prologue came with Duke trailing by four with 1.8 seconds left until a single inbounds heave for a miracle finish of sorts. Fans had already moved onto the court when Mark Mitchell threw a long inbound pass that was intercepted by Cam Hildreth near the center of the court. And they were at full speed as soon as the horn sounded.
“I mean, like everyone knew it was coming,†Filipowski said. “They were four seconds ahead with two seconds to go. Everyone was just waiting for the moment. Did they do anything to stop it? They did nothing to stop it. That’s just ridiculous.â€
Filipowski’s collision occurred as he walked from one sideline to the other toward the Duke bench, putting him in the path of what amounted to a wide oncoming rush from the baseline.
Filipowski, who had raised his arms as if to brace for a possible collision, appeared to slam his right leg into the leg of a fan running past him and lost his balance. He eventually wrapped his arms around the shoulders of a manager and teammate Stanley Borden for help getting through the locker room tunnel amid the chaos.
Footage showed a Wake Forest fan pressing his right hand into the center of the number 30 on the back of Filipowski’s jersey as he wobbled.
“I’ve heard of videos of you getting punched in the back, so I definitely feel like it was personal,” Filipowski said. “You know, definitely intentional. Like I said, there’s no reason for them to see a big guy like me trying to work his way off the field, and they can’t just work around me. There’s no excuse for that.â€
Scheyer — who referenced the Clark incident and said he regretted not taking his players off the field sooner — was asked if he would raise the issue with ACC officials for future changes.
“Yes, they’re here today, you can see,†Scheyer said. “Who in their right mind can see that and (say), ‘Yes, that’s smartâ€? It’s dangerous. In what other sport does that happen? And I’m telling you, I don’t even think, it was… what, the buzzer went off and suddenly there were fans in half court.â€
It certainly happened quickly on a day where the atmosphere at Joel Coliseum matched the efforts of the Demon Deacons, who drew a record crowd and their first sellout since 2017 while significantly improving their chances for an NCAA Tournament bid.
But towards the end of the game, the aftermath of what had been an exciting performance was put to rest. And Currie said he agreed with Scheyer “that something more needs to be done about the national phenomenon of right-and-field storms.”
“I didn’t see what happened at the end, I hope he’s doing well,” Wake Forest coach Steve Forbes said. “I don’t like legal proceedings, I never have. I’ve been part of that before as a coach. They just don’t feel safe. And I’m sure the next time that happens we’ll take better care of that situation.â€