Oklahoma State star Marcus Smart has been suspended for three games for shoving a Texas Tech fan in the final seconds of Saturday's game, Cowboys coach Travis Ford announced Sunday.
Smart tried to block Jaye Crockett's dunk attempt from behind with 6.2 seconds to go but stumbled out of bounds behind the basket. As he was being helped up, he exchanged words with a fan in the front row before lunging for the fan and pushing him with two hands. The fan, wearing a black Texas Tech shirt, stumbled backward but did not fall.
Smart then walked away, pointing back in the fan's direction. Officials assessed a technical foul but did not eject him, and he remained on the bench until the final buzzer.
"Mr. Smart's actions were a clear violation of the Big 12 Conference's Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct Policy," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said in a statement. "Such behavior has no place in athletics, and will not be tolerated. I appreciate the efforts of Oklahoma State University athletics director Mike Holder in addressing this matter, and believe this is an appropriate response to an inappropriate action."
Oklahoma State travels to play Texas on Tuesday, then faces Oklahoma at home on Saturday before a road game at Baylor on Feb. 17. Following Smart's suspension, the Cowboys' next game is at home against Texas Tech.
Smart expressed remorse in a brief statement at a news conference Sunday evening.
"I want to apologize to the fan, whose name is Jeff Orr. I want to apologize to him. I want to apologize to my teammates, to my coaching staff, Coach Ford, my family, Oklahoma State University. This is not how I [conduct] myself, this is not how this program is ran. This is not how I was raised. I let my emotions get the best of me.
"Just can't let that happen again. This is a lesson I'll have to learn from. The consequences that are coming with it, I'm taking full responsibility. No finger pointing. This is all upon me.
"I just want to really apologize to those that are very important to me. I feel like I let my teammates down. These guys mean a lot to me. Not to be able to be out there with them, it hits me in my heart. I have a lot of people that look up to me, a lot of little kids, so once again, I truly apologize. This is not me. I really do apologize for it. Like I said, I take full responsibility and the consequences that come with it."
Ford said Smart made a mistake but the guard still has his "unwavering support."
"Undoubtedly, last night was not one of his finer moments," Ford said. "But Marcus Smart has had many great moments as a person, as a player. And I know Marcus Smart's heart. I know how he's hurting. I know how regretful he is right now.
"Marcus made a big mistake last night, he knows that," he added. "We talked about it extensively. He knows we don't condone things of that matter. He has owned up to it. ... Marcus is a young man that has been in the public eye for quite a bit. And I think we'd all agree for the highest percentage of the time, he's conducted himself as a tremendous young man. But he made a mistake that he's going to pay for."
"We are not endorsing that gesture from the Texas A&M game," Beal said. "It just did not rise up to be any kind of issue."
Davis wrote on Twitter that he remembered Orr but disagreed with Smart's actions.
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/10428708/marcus-smart-oklahoma-state-cowboys-suspended-3-games-shoving-fan
Smart tried to block Jaye Crockett's dunk attempt from behind with 6.2 seconds to go but stumbled out of bounds behind the basket. As he was being helped up, he exchanged words with a fan in the front row before lunging for the fan and pushing him with two hands. The fan, wearing a black Texas Tech shirt, stumbled backward but did not fall.
Smart then walked away, pointing back in the fan's direction. Officials assessed a technical foul but did not eject him, and he remained on the bench until the final buzzer.
"Mr. Smart's actions were a clear violation of the Big 12 Conference's Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct Policy," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said in a statement. "Such behavior has no place in athletics, and will not be tolerated. I appreciate the efforts of Oklahoma State University athletics director Mike Holder in addressing this matter, and believe this is an appropriate response to an inappropriate action."
Oklahoma State travels to play Texas on Tuesday, then faces Oklahoma at home on Saturday before a road game at Baylor on Feb. 17. Following Smart's suspension, the Cowboys' next game is at home against Texas Tech.
Smart expressed remorse in a brief statement at a news conference Sunday evening.
"I want to apologize to the fan, whose name is Jeff Orr. I want to apologize to him. I want to apologize to my teammates, to my coaching staff, Coach Ford, my family, Oklahoma State University. This is not how I [conduct] myself, this is not how this program is ran. This is not how I was raised. I let my emotions get the best of me.
"Just can't let that happen again. This is a lesson I'll have to learn from. The consequences that are coming with it, I'm taking full responsibility. No finger pointing. This is all upon me.
"I just want to really apologize to those that are very important to me. I feel like I let my teammates down. These guys mean a lot to me. Not to be able to be out there with them, it hits me in my heart. I have a lot of people that look up to me, a lot of little kids, so once again, I truly apologize. This is not me. I really do apologize for it. Like I said, I take full responsibility and the consequences that come with it."
Ford said Smart made a mistake but the guard still has his "unwavering support."
"Undoubtedly, last night was not one of his finer moments," Ford said. "But Marcus Smart has had many great moments as a person, as a player. And I know Marcus Smart's heart. I know how he's hurting. I know how regretful he is right now.
"Marcus made a big mistake last night, he knows that," he added. "We talked about it extensively. He knows we don't condone things of that matter. He has owned up to it. ... Marcus is a young man that has been in the public eye for quite a bit. And I think we'd all agree for the highest percentage of the time, he's conducted himself as a tremendous young man. But he made a mistake that he's going to pay for."
"We are not endorsing that gesture from the Texas A&M game," Beal said. "It just did not rise up to be any kind of issue."
Davis wrote on Twitter that he remembered Orr but disagreed with Smart's actions.
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/10428708/marcus-smart-oklahoma-state-cowboys-suspended-3-games-shoving-fan
