This isn’t going to help the reputation of Cincinnati Bearcats players; the troubled Yancy Gates specifically. Today’s incident isn’t indicative of how players on the 8th ranked team in college basketball (Xavier Musketeers) should act, and I doubt Tu Holloway‘s NBA Draft stock will be helped by this.
Cincinnati vs. Xavier is always a bitter rivalry; but today it didn’t just cross the line; it nuked it.
A massive brawl towards the end resulted in the contest being called off with 9.4 seconds remaining.
Xavier’s Holloway and Cincinnati’s Ge’Lawn Guyn started trash talking each other towards the end of a 76-53 XU blowout. Guyn laid his hand on Holloway, Xavier’s Dezmine Wells shoved Guyn down and then the melee ensued.
Bearcats forward Yancy Gates landed the fight’s big blow when gave Xavier center Kenny Frease a brutal haymaker that dropped Frease and left him bloodied. Gates is talented but underachieving, and he’s been suspended from the team before. Gates is averaging close to a double-double per game, but now you have to wonder about his future with the program. He’ll be suspended through the start of Big East play at minimum.
Frease is no angel himself; as he was suspended earlier in the year for not fulfilling his obligations off the court. Him and Gates deserve each other as Frease is a talented big man who’s head is getting in the way of reaching his potential.
Cincinnati coach Mike Cronin told the media he will meet with the school’s president and A.D. to see who’ll still be with the team. Gates won’t be the only one facing disciplinary action; and Xavier’s Mark Lyons only made things worse by making defensive hostile remarks about the fight during his media session.
He showed no remorse to the press which will no doubt lead to more negative attention to this brouhaha.
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