Knight Thrown Out After Throwing Chair

Indiana Coach Bob Knight received three technical fouls, including one for throwing a chair across the court, and was ejected five minutes into the Hoosiers’ Big Ten basketball game with Purdue Saturday. Purdue went on to win, 72-63.

Knight became angry when officials called a foul on Indiana’s Steve Alford with 15:59 left in the first half. Knight protested again when a foul was called against Indiana’s Marty Simmons with 15:01 remaining. Then as Purdue inbounded the ball, a foul was called on the Hoosiers’ Daryl Thomas. Knight was given his first technical after swearing at an official. He then picked up a chair and threw it across the court, producing the second technical.

When he continued to argue with the officials, Knight was ejected with his third technical and left the court after Indiana Athletic Director Ralph Floyd came to the floor to talk with him and officials.

Purdue was leading, 11-6, at the time, and the Boilermakers’ Steve Reid went to the free-throw line to shoot six foul shots. He made three.

“I was shocked--that’s about as simple as I can put it,” Reid said. “I’ve never seen anything like this happen before. “Coach (Gene) Keady said he just wanted us to keep things in perspective, to go out and play and not to let it bother us. I know it bothered me. We had a chance for eight points and only got three.”

Assistant coach Jim Crews took over directing the Indiana team for the rest of the game.

Knight was not available for comment after the game. Floyd declined immediately to make comment and later issued a statement that IU President John Ryan was having him send a report to the league office.

“Dr. Ryan has requested that I prepare an immediate report to send to the conference commissioner, with a copy forwarded to Dr. Ryan,” Floyd’s statement said. “And there will be no further comment from Indiana University officials regarding this incident.”

Keady, the Purdue coach, said: “I think Knight’s technicals fired us up, and we wanted to beat them by 30 points. It got the crowd into the game, and it was probably won or lost right there. I don’t remember anything like it. He coaches his way and I my way.”

Knight’s players and some of the Purdue players thought Knight’s actions were done to inspire his team, which slipped to 14-10 overall and 6-8 in the conference.

“It’s not something that we were really expecting to happen, but then again, we really don’t know what to expect,” the Hoosiers’ Thomas said.

Thomas’ teammate, Dan Dakich, said of Knight: “He did what he thought was right.”

Purdue’s Todd Mitchell said: “I think Coach Knight did it to get his team fired up. After the incident, we just wanted to beat them worse. I don’t think he should be suspended. I know Coach Knight had a reason for doing it. If that’s what he wants to do to get his team fired up, that’s all right with me.”

Purdue’s Jim Bullock said: “I don’t know what he’s doing. He’s a tough coach and I think Gene Keady’s a tough coach, too. But, he (Knight) gets a little frantic at times. Throwing chairs at a college basketball game is going a little too far.”

The incident was the latest in a series for the controversial Knight, who earlier this season kept all but one of his starters on the bench as the Hoosiers lost to Illinois. Knight later dismissed one of those starters, Mike Giomi, from the team for “academic reasons,” even though Giomi was still eligible by NCAA and Big Ten standards.

Giomi later said he was dismissed for cutting classes in violation of Knight’s standards.

Knight, who coached the United States men’s basketball team to a gold medal in the L.A. Olympics, was reprimanded by the Big Ten earlier this season for missing a preseason meeting. He said later that he stayed away from the meeting because of “recruiting violations” by his fellow coaches.

In 1979, Knight was coaching the United States Pan-American basketball team in Puerto Rico and became involved in a scuffle with a policeman. He was tried in absentia when he refused to report for his trial.