As the Oklahoma State game against Texas Tech wound down to its final seconds Saturday night in Lubbock, Texas, Marcus Smart reportedly tussled with a Texas fan, ESPN reports about the incident that is under review.Â
It was not clear what prompted the incident before hundreds of stunned spectators and it's still being determined whether Smart was the sole aggressor. The incident came seconds after Smart tried to block a shot by Texas’ Jaye Crockett before stumbling out of bounds near the front row. As he was being helped up, he and the fan appeared to exchange words, the article says.
Smart was benched and assessed a technical foul, but was not ejected. The fan was later identified as Jeff Orr, who travels thousands of miles each year to attend Texas Tech basketball games, the report says.
Smart has claimed to Oklahoma State coaches that Orr called him a racial slur, a member of the basketball program confirmed to ESPN.
It was a chaotic ending to what turned out to be a close game: Oklahoma State Cowboys fell to the Texas Tech Red Raiders by a score of 65-61.
It is unclear what, if any, disciplinary actions will be taken against Smart, a key player on the Oklahoma Sate squad.
Read more at ESPN.