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Eastern Illinois’ Kinyon Hodges lands a jab at a FAN in the loss to Lindenwood … but the wild jab misses and the junior guard is technically fouled.
A men’s basketball player from eastern Illinois hit a fan sitting in the front row of a game against Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis.
Kinyon Hodges, an EIU player from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, was seen trying to hit a Lindenwood fan in the first half of Thursday’s 80-67 loss to the Lions. Hodges did not make contact with the fans, for which he has assessed a technical foul, but allowed it to remain in the game.
The EIU has said that any discipline will be ‘handled internally’.
“We do not condone this type of behavior by our men’s basketball team or any of our 500 student-athletes,” read a statement from EIU athletic director Tom Michael.
“The issue has been addressed with both the EIU player involved and the Ohio Valley Conference and any disciplinary action will be handled internally. The player in question understands that this is not the type of behavior displayed by our student-athletes or our men’s basketball program and on the spur of the moment lets the emotions take over. This will be a teachable moment moving forward and we apologize to anyone who may have been negatively affected by the incident.”
A men’s basketball player from eastern Illinois hit a fan sitting in the front row of a game against Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Kinyon Hodges (pictured Dec. 21) was seen trying to hit a Lindenwood fan in the first half of Thursday’s 80-67 loss to the Lions. Hodges made no contact with the fan, for which he assessed a technical foul, but was allowed to stay in the game.
The hit was thrown with 2:26 remaining in the first half when Hodges got distracted on offense, turned his back on the live ball and walked to the sideline.
He is seen talking to someone in the crowd before taking a hit. The fan steps back to avoid the hit, but he quickly gets to his feet and taunts Hodges when he is called for a technical foul.
Meanwhile, teammate Nick Ellington is seen diving into a Lindenwood player in the background as Hodges fixates on his feud with the fan.
Hodges played 24 minutes Thursday, scoring two points on four shots. For the season, he is averaging 13.8 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.
The Division I team is 7-17 on the season and 3-8 in OVC play.
Eastern Illinois, which includes former NBA coach PJ Carlesimo’s son Kyle, made national headlines earlier this season by defeating Iowa. The 92-83 win at Iowa City is the biggest upset by game difference. points in the modern era.
The game marked the first time a 30-point favorite had lost a college basketball game in the last 30 years, according to ESPN Stats & Info.
A New Jersey player gambled on eastern Illinois, putting $1,000 on the money line (+1000) to pocket $10,000, a company spokesperson told DailyMail.com.
Incredibly, 60th-ranked Iowa had an early 18-4 lead, and the Big Ten school appeared to be on its way to an easy victory. Instead, the 350th-ranked Panthers pulled away from the Hawkeyes in the final moments of the game, when point guard Hodges finished with 22 points.
“We got hurt,” Eastern Illinois coach Marty Simmons told reporters afterward. ‘I think coming down eight at half time was a real blessing for us. I think our guys felt they had a chance if they played well in the second half.”
With Iowa entering as a 31 1/2-point favorite, the upset turned out to be the biggest on points in the modern era, according to Caesars Sportsbook.