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'You could have stayed in your seat': Fans can be held liable for injuring players while storming the court

The madness is all about the buzzer-beater moments, but sometimes those moments can cause harm to the players.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — This weekend is selection Sunday, when the March Madness bracket is released for the 2024 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. 

With the madness starting next week, there are sure to be some really close games. And when some games reach a fever pitch or an underdog pulls a big upset, fans are known to storm the court. But what happens if someone is injured? 

A recent example happened at Wake Forest University, where fans rushed the court after the Demon Deacons defeated Duke. As fans stormed the floor, Duke's Kyle Filipowski was caught in the rush and appeared to suffer a minor injury. The incident led to a week-long debate over whether court storming should be allowed and what the punishment should be for fans who are involved. 

While college sports leaders consider their options, some fans are wondering if they could be held responsible for an injury that happens during a court storming.  

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THE QUESTION

Can fans be civilly liable if they injure a player while storming the court? 

THE ANSWER

This is true.

Yes, fans can be held civilly liable if they injure a player while storming the court. 

OUR SOURCES

WHAT WE FOUND 

The NCAA has no policy on storming the court and leaves punishment up to each conference. Duke and Wake Forest are in the ACC. Currently, the ACC does not have rules against it. However, NCAA spokesperson David Worlock told NBC News that storming is not allowed during NCAA tournament games, and they work with venues to develop a security plan to try and prevent it. 

"Players don't go into it thinking they could be hurt during an after-storming incident," Haase said.

He said if a fan hurts a player because of court storming, they could be liable for that injury. 

"What would the argument be for a fan who rushed the court, ran into a player, and hurt them?" Haase asked. "Well, I didn't mean to do it. You could have stayed in your seat."

As for schools being held liable? That is still an open question. 

"A player was injured in 2003, sued the school, and settled the case, so it has happened in terms of whether the school could be held liable," Haase said. "That is an open question, and it's one schools should be concerned about." 

Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on FacebookX and Instagram.

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