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Friday, December 29, 2000
The physical play on the court spilled off it 15 minutes after last night's Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic basketball game between nationally ranked Tennessee and George Washington University. Fight breaks out after
Tennessee’s win
over GWUGame story
By Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinTennessee big man Charles Hathaway went to get food in the hospitality area near the George Washington locker room after the No. 6 Volunteers finished off a 92-81 victory.
During the physical contest, Hathaway and George Washington guard SirValiant Brown were called for double technicals after the two were tangled up underneath the basket midway through the second half.
The officials were slow to separate them. An altercation ensued where Hathaway appeared to kick out at Brown as he stood over him.
It led to a brief brawl among the players on the floor that ended up in a far corner of the arena before the officials could get things under control.
Later in the second half, another technical foul was called on Colonial guard Chris Monroe after he flipped Tennessee's Isiah Victor to the floor. It was part of a rough-and-tumble game where 62 fouls were called, including 37 on GWU that led to Tennessee shooting a school-record 60 free throws.As George Washington players exited through the same hospitality area where Hathaway was eating, words were exchanged that led to several George Washington players confronting Hathaway.
"It looked like nine or 10 guys surrounded him, to me," Stan Sheriff Center events manager Rich Sheriff said. "When he (Hathaway) started swinging that chair at the George Washington guys around him, I thought somebody was going to get hurt bad."
Soon after, another Tennessee player ran down the hall with a ladder to help protect Hathaway, who is 6-foot-10, 265 pounds. Sheriff and other Rainbow Classic personnel tried to break up the altercation that eventually involved nearly every coach and assistant on the two teams. Sheriff was punched several times, including the stomach and the head, as he and other Rainbow Classic personnel tried to get things under control.
Chief George Washington peacemaker Patrick Ngongba was spit at by Tennessee players that led Colonial head coach Tom Penders to say, "The Tennessee players showed no class. No class at all."
Several other skirmishes between the two teams ensued, before cooler heads prevailed. Sheriff was able to get Hathaway outside near the buses, then shut the arena door, which is locked from the outside.
Tennessee head coach Jerry Green barked at freshman Andy Ikeakor to join Hathaway, saying, "If you don't stay outside, you're going back to Houston right now."
Penders, who underwent triple bypass surgery that resulted in a pacemaker, wasn't able to control his players. But several women in the George Washington party, including one carrying a small child, urged the Colonial players to board the bus.
"They show us no respect at all," Ngongba said, who had to be restrained several times after he was instrumental in keeping the fight from escalating further. No one was hurt.
Players continued to threaten each other, however, and said they knew what hotels they were in, prompting Rainbow Classic officials to call and warn the hotel properties of a possible problem.
"It's a bad idea to have both teams get their food in the same area after a game like that," Green said. "We haven't ever faced an aggressive style of basketball like we did tonight."
Eventually, the two teams boarded the buses under the watchful eyes of campus security, which arrived on the scene minutes after the altercations began.
"That's the first time that has happened since the arena opened," Sheriff said. "It was tense there for a while."
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