ACC official Bert Smith hits Sion James in face during call vs. Wake Forest

Bert Smith, an ACC referee, inadvertently hit Blue Devils guard Sion James in the face during the first half of Duke‘s matchup vs. Wake Forest on Monday.

The incident came early in the game. The referee was signaling a turnover and appeared to be unaware that James was behind him. Nothing came of the incident afterward, and Smith appeared to apologize to James after the contact was made.

Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, they didn’t get any free throws out of it.

Bert Smith accidentally catching Duke’s Sion James in the face 😊 pic.twitter.com/s2iaY6Mxt5

— Roger Ayers Ref Tracker (@AyersRefTracker) March 4, 2025

It was already a spotlight evening for James, who was honored in the pregame Senior Day activities alongside Mason Gillis, Stanley Borden and Neil Begovich.

Fans can catch the rest of Duke’s final game of the season inside Cameron Indoor Stadium vs. the Demon Deacons live on ESPN.

For Smith, he’s a veteran NCAA official. The last time his name made headlines was in 2021 when he was working the Elite Eight matchup between Gonzaga and USC during that year’s NCAA Tournament. Unfortunately, it wasn’t because of a light-hearted moment like the one that occurred on Monday night.

Instead, he collapsed during the game and had to be stretchered off the floor by medical personnel on hand at the event. After spending two days in the hospital, Smith revealed that he was dealing with a blood clot in his lung.

Of course, he has since recovered and is back to refereeing high-profile college basketball games including Monday’s matchup in the ACC.

“He’s a great official, great person,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said after the game. “I mean, I was just shocked and scared for him, but I was able to stick my head in there a little bit and see that he was talking and coherent and tried to say a quick prayer for him and just wished him the best.”

For James, he did not miss any time on the court after Smith’s inadvertent contact with him. He went on to be one of Duke’s most productive players in the first half, heading into the locker room with eight points on his final game on Duke’s home floor.

If the Blue Devils can hang on and beat Wake Forest, Duke will improve to 27-3 on the season heading into their final game of the regular season — a road trip to North Carolina for another installment of the most storied rivalry in all of college basketball.