Sports

ESPN Sparked Mass Confusion With Comments On NCAA Tournament Suspensions For LSU, Gamecocks

#NCAA Women's Basketball
by Last Updated
A view of the opening tip at the SEC women's tournament championship game between South Carolina and LSU.

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ESPN announcers at the SEC women’s basketball tournament confused the heck out of viewers during the championship game. Following an all-out melee at the end of a matchup between South Carolina and LSU, the broadcast team suggested that suspensions would be handed out to a number of players.

With the championship contest being the last before NCAA Tournament play for both teams, any suspensions would leave each squad shorthanded upon entering the Big Dance. Luckily for the Gamecocks and Tigers, that initial storyline was wrong.

The conference title scene devolved into pure chaos with a little over two minutes remaining in regulation. After an intentional foul on LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson, emotion got the best of everyone involved.

Johnson elbowed a South Carolina player who was emphatically celebrating the opportunity to close out an SEC title, resulting in a response from 6-foot-8 Kamilla Cardoso.

Cardoso pushed Johnson to the ground, and benches soon cleared.

At the peak of this mayhem, viewers were hit with the bombshell news that players involved in the kerfuffle would be suspended for NCAA Tournament play.

“Every player that was just ejected will not be able to play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.”

ESPN announcers said that both benches would be unavailable after being ejected for leaving the sidelines, leaving South Carolina with just six players and LSU with five for the opening round of March Madness play.

Not exactly the way you’d want to kick off postseason play.

Luckily, that wasn’t actually the case, though South Carolina will still be without one of its top players when it begins the Big Dance.

Kamilla Cardoso has been suspended.

She was one of the instigators of the brawl, though her action came in defense of a teammate.

ESPN was quick to clarify the suspension situation after initially causing mass confusion.

While the Gamecocks don’t want to see Cardoso on the bench, it’s much better than playing with just six players as you start a potential national championship run. LSU, meanwhile, should be at full strength.

Sunday’s scuffle ended what had been a chippy contest throughout, seeing other incidents of hair pulling and flagrant fouls with teams trying to gain an advantage in any way possible.

With the win, South Carolina competed a perfect 32-0 season ahead of March Madness. As for LSU, they’re hoping to see the Gamecocks again in the NCAA Tournament.