The West Virginia Mountaineers and the Oklahoma State Cowboys faced off on Monday night in a Big 12 matchup that got extremely chippy down the stretch, resulting in a wild melee between the two teams.
The melee broke out between the two teams in the second half as West Virginia forward Tre Mitchell and Oklahoma State forward Kalib Boone fought for a loose ball. Unfortunately, neither player stopped fighting for the ball even after the whistle was blown.
This Big 12 matchup between Oklahoma State and West Virginia got very chippy in the second half. pic.twitter.com/5QvvjBHqEU
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) February 21, 2023
It took quite some time for the officials to separate these two players, but luckily neither player escalated things once they were stood up.
An official review was issued following the play to determine if any additional calls were required. other than the personal foul on Boone before the melee, of course. Both Boone and Mitchell were issued a technical foul, along with Oklahoma State player Woody Newton being ejected for leaving the bench area.
After an official review, two technical fouls along with an ejection for leaving the bench area were issued. pic.twitter.com/T3q9VnnRiG
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) February 21, 2023
Many fans took to social media and offered their take on this chippy play and resulting melee.
What a total train wreck of a game for #OKState. It's one thing to get blitzed by a really good TCU team, but West Virginia? I know the Mountaineers are playing better, but they have, what? Four wins in the Big 12?
Not good, Cowboys. https://t.co/hDE7HmtBBb— Jenni Carlson (@JenniCarlson_OK) February 21, 2023
Here's why there was a short delay in Morgantown. #Big12MBB https://t.co/ghJqAEJw5w
— Matthew Postins (@PostinsPostcard) February 21, 2023
Kalib Boone and Tre Mitchell hug it out after a scrum on the floor.
Woody Newton left the bench, so there's probably a technical foul coming there at the least. #OKState
— Jacob Unruh (@jacobunruh) February 21, 2023
Woody being ejected is dumb, Boone getting a foul for diving for a loose ball is idiotic but par for the course for these refs
— Logan Whitson #RangelQB1 #OllieState #OG24Heisman (@Ollie4Heisman) February 21, 2023
This play greatly harmed the Cowboys in particular due to what it meant for Kalib Boone. The additional technical foul for Boone served as his fifth and final foul, ultimately ending his night early.
Considering Boone has been Oklahoma State’s leading scorer on the year, this certainly impacted them greatly down the stretch in the second half. West Virginia would cruise to an easy 85-67 victory in large part due to this huge call on Monday night.
[The Comeback on Twitter] Photo Credit: ESPN 2
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.