“It’s hard to talk about the game when my biggest concern was just the safety of our players,” Scheyer said after No. 4 Duke lost to No. 14 UNC, 71-68. “I have staff members who have been hit in the face. My family, pushing people away, trying not to get trampled. That’s not what this game is about.”
A Duke spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for further explanation about which staffers were involved.
North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham apologized to Scheyer after the game and noted that at least one person was injured during the storming of the court, although he did not say who it was.
“That was just unfortunate,” Cunningham said, “and I hope it doesn’t happen again.”
DOUBLE COURT STORM ⛈️
VIBES ARE UP IN CHAPEL HILL ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/9Kk8nyi8bQ
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 8, 2026
Trimble’s 3-pointer — which handed Duke its second loss this season — initially appeared to be a buzzer-beater, sending UNC fans spilling out of the Dean Smith Center stands onto the floor. Scheyer and other Duke officials immediately jumped to the Blue Devils’ defense and attempted to create a barrier against attacking fans. Scheyer specifically helped protect junior guard Caleb Foster from crowd contact, but at least one fan appeared to throw something in the Blue Devils’ direction.
“That was a scary ending,” Scheyer added, “and that’s not what this rivalry is about.”
But ultimately, after review, the officials determined there were 0.4 seconds left to play, and the game stopped temporarily while fans cleared the floor. As the final moments expired after a botched full-court pass shortly thereafter, fans who had moved from the floor to the wings flooded the hardwood again as Duke headed to the locker room.
Cunningham said he was on the ground next to Duke star Cameron Boozer during the first court rush, and Boozer told Cunningham he thought there was still time left after Trimble’s 3. Cunningham said he then asked Boozer to stand under the basket to avoid any altercations or fans rushing toward him.
“He walked over and I thanked him after the game. Total class, and stood there motionless,” Cunningham said. “He was great. So a lot of credit for the way their players handled it and didn’t react.”
This is the second time in three seasons that Duke has been on the other side of a court rush gone wrong. In February 2024, after Duke lost to Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C., Blue Devils forward Kyle Filipowski was struck by a fan on the ground and appeared to be injured, holding an ice pack over his right kneecap as he spoke to reporters after the game. “I definitely feel like it was personal,” Filipowski said at the time.
In the aftermath of that incident – and a similar incident involving then-Iowa women’s star Caitlin Clark the same week – there was debate around the sport about whether right rushes should be banned in the future, to prevent players from getting injured in the process.
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