A college hoops game between Mississippi Valley State and Alabama A&M took an interesting turn Saturday when a cheerleader was ejected after being involved in an on-court confrontation with a player.
Late in the second half, an Alabama A&M player appeared to make contact with a Mississippi Valley State cheerleader during her routine — as she jumped into the air near the baseline, where junior guard/forward Dailin Smith was inbounding the ball.
Play continued down at the other end of the court, but when play resumed in front of the Mississippi Valley State cheerleaders, the same cheerleader who was allegedly bumped, walked onto the court after a whistle and proceeded to push Smith. Presumably for bumping her during her routine.
Here is the full sequence that led to a MVSU cheerleader being ejected against Alabama A&M… pic.twitter.com/XibUYhgpGi
— PSC Highlights (@psc_highlights) February 12, 2023
The game was stopped and security escorted the cheerleader off the court. The broadcast team calling the game relayed the incident.
“The Alabama A&M coach, he’s fussing,” Caleb Brunson, one member of the broadcast said. “He’s fussing and cussing.”
“Yeah, coach is kinda losing it over here,” Andre Williams, the other member of the broadcast team, added. After a brief pause, Brunson revealed that “they’re gonna put one of the cheerleaders out of the game.”
Cheerleaders proximity to live game action
This is crazy. Smith didn’t intentionally hit the cheerleader. He was inbounding the ball and he accidentally brushed the cheerleader.
Why was she so close to the baseline anyway? This is part of the problem with in arena entertainment. The main reason fans are there is to watch the game. We don’t need all this ancillary stuff. Particularly in a smaller gym.
Cheerleaders feel a sense of value and pride in supporting their school’s teams, so this isn’t about diminishing that. Can we do something where their proximity to the players isn’t so close, particularly when doing routines?
Just a thought …
We’re unnecessarily violent as a society
The other issue is civility. Why did the cheerleader think confronting the player and getting physical was the right response? Was she going to fight him over an accident? Its not like she was knocked to the ground or injured.
We’ve increasingly become an even less tolerant and more violent society. Little things that don’t matter get escalated into big deals.
Players on the floor are in the throes of competition. What if he didn’t recognize it was a cheerleader and swung and connected? Then we’d be having a whole different conversation.
It may be quaint but the lessons you were hopefully taught as a child are good rules to follow all throughout life. Keep your hands to yourself. And, don’t start nothing, won’t be nothing.
The excitement didn’t end there, the game was a back-and-forth contest that ended in an Alabama A&M win at the buzzer.
Junior guard Messiah Thompson dribbled at the top of the key with five seconds remaining before driving right and drilling a last-second shot as he faded away from the basket.
Alabama A&M Buzzer Beater! pic.twitter.com/LT8Isb2mDI
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) February 12, 2023
Alabama A&M’s record improved to 10-15, with a 6-6 record in the Southwestern Athletic Conference after the win. Mississippi State dropped to 3-23, with a 2-10 conference record, and missed out on the chance to secure a moderate upset with less than a month until the conference tournament.
