During halftime of last night’s showdown between Louisville and North Carolina game, Louisville coach Slick Rick Pitino had to be held back from going after a heckling UNC fan during halftime of the Cardinals’ 74-63 loss.
Pitino, who was passing the UNC student section as he headed towards the locker room, said an adult male “got in my face and said something I didn’t like.”
Via ESPN:
“I take it from the students all the time; you expect it from the students. But from an adult? And then to turn his back on me like he’s a coward?” Pitino said. “And he is a coward, but North Carolina is a classy place and he doesn’t speak for the rest of the people.”
ESPN reported the fan in question yelled, “Pitino, you suck!” Pitino then turned and had to be restrained by his coaching staff, partially ripping his jacket.
“I’ve always said this is the classiest place in college basketball, until I met a fan on the way out,” Pitino said. “It always reminded me of a class place, but they’re getting just like some of the other places now.”
UNC coach Roy Williams was unaware of the incident until after the game, saying he apologized to Pitino on behalf of the university:
“I don’t like that. We’re North Carolina. We don’t have to be like everybody else,” Williams said. “You can raise Cain, you can boo, but you don’t have to say stuff that we as coaches have to put up with on the road. I hope that never happens again at North Carolina.”
Gotta love when emotions start running high in college basketball because it usually means one thing: March Madness is around the corner.
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