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Fight breaks out between Kentucky, Georgia State after flagrant foul

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby:Grant Grubbs•11/29/24•

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Mark Pope Feast Week
Nov 19, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope directs his players during the second half against the Lipscomb Bisons at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Kentucky‘s showdown against Georgia State grew physical on Friday evening after Panthers forward Clash Peters shoved Amari Williams in the back on defense. Kentucky guard Koby Brea immediately rushed to Williams’ aid, pushing Peters backward.

As the two teams began to clash, Kentucky head coach Mark Pope ran onto the court, putting himself between his players and Georgia State’s athletes. After the melee was contained, the referees took several minutes to look back at the footage of the play.

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In the aftermath, Georgia State’s Zarique Nutter and Clash Peters, as well as Kentucky’s Koby Brea and Otega Oweh, received technical fouls. Peters was initially ejected from the game but ultimately was allowed to return to the game.

Williams didn’t allow the dirty play to affect his game. The Drexel transfer only improved following the altercation, rattling off six straight points for Kentucky. In fact, the Wildcats seemed to respond as a team in general.

When the scuffle occurred, Kentucky only had an eight-point lead. Less than six minutes later, the Wildcats comfortably led Georgia State by 21 points. Rupp Arena didn’t hesitate to celebrate Kentucky’s gritty response, raining down cheers from the rafters.

Another unusual scene on Kentucky’s home court

This isn’t the first time an unusual scene has unfolded inside Rupp Arena this season. In Kentucky’s 108-59 win over Jackson State last Friday, fans were left scratching their heads after JSU’s Dylan Canoville threw his shoe at Kentucky‘s Brandon Garrison, trying to knock the ball out of his hands.

Evidently, fans weren’t the only ones confused. Following the victory over the Tigers, Mark Pope commented on the unusual incident

“We got to see shoes flying in the air. It was a magical evening,” Pope said. “Uh oh, Lee (Pope’s wife) said I shouldn’t have said that. I thought it was fantastic.”

Like Williams, Garrison didn’t allow the odd moment to throw him off his game. The Oklahoma State transfer finished the game with six points, eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and a game-high three blocks.

He was far from the only Wildcat who put on a show against Jackson State. Koby Brea led Kentucky with 22 points while shooting 5-8 from beyond the arc. Pope was happy with his team’s performance.

“It’s a great night. Proud of our guys,” Pope said. “Thought they did a ton of good things and it was fun. You know, we got to see everything. We got to see a ton of transition and a ton of shots and all kinds of fireworks from all of our guys.”