Rick Crawford had a great few seconds at the Barclays Center Classic on Saturday night. The basketball referee was on hand to deliver the ball during the opening tip of the game between Vanderbilt and La Salle. However, his time was cut short by an elbow to the face.
According to ESPN:
Crawford threw the ball up for the opening tipoff and as [Vanderbilt center Damian] Jones came down, it appeared as if his arm struck the 19-year official flush on the face. Crawford immediately fell to the court, and was tended to by trainers and medical professionals for roughly 10 minutes before being stretchered off the court.
Crawford told The Associated Press he “felt an elbow hit me across my right eye and then I just went down,” following the tipoff.
“It was a little scary,” Crawford said, who added he did not have concussion symptoms. “I think after the elbow hit my eye, my head hit the floor. I was fully conscious. I was aware of what was going on. So it was a little scary. Just a little knot over my right eye.”
The video is rather cringe-worthy, but only lasts a minute. Plus, you can rest assured Crawford is doing fine after the incident. (He talked to the press, didn’t he?) No word on whether or not he’ll be on hand to judge the local skeet shooting challenge.
