The opening minutes of Tuesday’s Elite Eight showdown between the USC Trojans and Gonzaga Bulldogs were overshadowed by a scary incident involving a referee.
from www.yardbarker.com:
Zac Wassink from YardBarker.com
Roughly four-and-a-half minutes into the contest, veteran Bert Smith collapsed and hit the back of his head hard on the court.
Per Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd and others quickly ran to attend to Smith, who remained on the ground for several minutes before he was stretchered off the court.
One of the officials just passed out on the court. Scary scene. He hit the floor with a thud. Doctors are being called. Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd immediately ran over to him, looking fearful.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 30, 2021
The good news is that Smith was sitting up and seemed to be communicating as he was taken into the locker room for further evaluations:
Bert Smith, the official, is awake and sitting up as he's carted off on a stretcher. Scary moment here at Lucas Oil. Gets a nice ovation from the fans.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 30, 2021
As Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated noted, TBS was later able to confirm Smith’s condition was stable:
Ross Dellenger
@RossDellenger
TBS says official Bert Smith was feeling light-headed while on the court and he’s now being tended to trainers in the locker room. His condition is stable.
A replacement official filled in for Smith following a timeout.