The start of Saturday night’s second half between Ohio State and Indiana was delayed for an unusual reason.
Just moments before the second half was about to begin, a metal rod fell from the jumbotron that hangs above center court at Indiana’s Assembly Hall, nearly striking Ohio State freshman Brice Sensabaugh as it fell to the court.
The Ohio State-Indiana game had a delay for several minutes after a metal rod fell from the jumbotron at Assembly Hall.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 29, 2023
It almost hit Ohio State star freshman Brice Sensabaugh. pic.twitter.com/uVTwuGRnbg
Fortunately, Sensabaugh was unharmed as the debris landed about seven feet away from him. The game was delayed for approximately five minutes, but resumed after the scoreboard was inspected and officials determined it was safe to continue the game.
Although there were no further issues with the scoreboard once the second half began, Chris Holtmann said he was concerned about resuming the game after it happened. He was told the debris that hit the court weighed 10 to 15 pounds and said it would have “significantly injured” Sensabaugh if it struck him.
"Their game day staff felt like it was fine, but it was a significant concern."
— Griffin Strom (@GriffinStrom3) January 29, 2023
“Thank God it didn’t injure Brice, or any other player for that matter,” Holtmann said.
Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann on the conversations during the delay caused by falling debris from the Assembly Hall jumbotron: pic.twitter.com/LQAcj9Xmyx
— Mason Williams (@mvsonwilliams) January 29, 2023
The scoreboard was lowered after the game for further inspection, and a photo posted by CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander showed that the debris made a visible indent in Assembly Hall’s wooden floor.
Heres the indent in the Assembly Hall floor from the piece of metal that fell from the scoreboard right before the second half started (and landed close Ohio States Brice Sensabaugh).
— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) January 29, 2023
Theyre lowering the scoreboard now to inspect it further. pic.twitter.com/th3CwQYLuT
Indiana finished the first half on a 15-0 run to take a 46-30 lead into halftime. The delay appeared to slow the Hoosiers’ momentum initially, as Ohio State started the second half on a 7-2 run to cut the lead to 11 points, but the Hoosiers quickly regained control of the game and went on to win 86-70.
