This Tuesday, Duke basketball faced off against Kansas at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in a highly anticipated Top 11 matchup as part of the Vegas Showdown. With the Blue Devils (4-1) coming off a road win at Arizona and the top-ranked Jayhawks (5-0) continuing their strong start, the clash between these two powerhouse programs drew considerable attention.

Historically, Kansas has held an edge in their series, with a 4-1 record over the last five meetings and an 8-6 overall advantage. However, Duke’s history of upsetting top-ranked teams, such as their 2021 victory over then-No. 1 Gonzaga, raised hopes for another thrilling outcome. But, those hopes seemed to have shattered for Kansas as they lost a key player mid-game.

As Duke trimmed its deficit to just two points, tensions flared. Kansas center Hunter Dickinson and Duke forward Maliq Brown went up for a rebound, leading to a physical entanglement. While initially appearing routine, things escalated when Dickinson seemingly kicked Brown in the head as they went to the floor.

The incident resulted in Dickinson receiving a Flagrant 2 foul, leading to an automatic ejection with 10:26 left in the second half. Dickinson has a bad reputation for borderline dirty plays, and this recent move felt influenced by that reputation. Even though it was hard to discern intent in the moment, the referees determined Dickinson’s kick was intentional. HC Bill Self wasn’t here for it. He was apparently seen mouthing “This is f-ckin bullsh-t,” after the incident.

But it wasn’t just the coach who was frustrated. As soon as the footage aired, it garnered significant attention online and the spectators did not play nice.

Hunter Dickinson faces the heat

Fouls are nothing new for Dickinson. In the second game of the season against the North Carolina Tar Heels, he drew four personal fouls, just one short of an ejection. So one of the spectators wasn’t having it. Disappointed, one remarked, “Every time I watch Kansas, Hunter Dickinson is always doing something ridiculously unacceptable. The Matthew Dellavedova of college basketball,” comparing him to the notoriously physical NBA guard.

“Hunter Dickinson is too grown to be acting like this,” another opined over the recurring instances. 

Duke men’s basketball program has witnessed its share of hate and then some over the years. While it continues to persist, today’s instance might have just seen spectators shift the sides.“Only Hunter Dickinson could make me have sympathy for a Duke basketball player,” one echoed the majority sentiment.

A few Jayhawks fans were no thrilled with Dickinson’s actions, regardless of his 11 points and game-high six rebounds at the time. “Hunter Dickinson has been ejected. Thank Christ,” penned another. In today’s showdown against Duke University’s men’s basketball team, he accumulated three personal fouls and three turnovers.  “Hunter Dickinson GET A JOB,” one exclaimed.

While Dickinson did contribute 11 points to the team’s total, his absence didn’t affect the outcome. Kansas still handed Duke University a 75-72 defeat.