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Former Alabama coach Anthony Grant held back from going after refs in NIT game
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Former Alabama head coach Anthony Grant had to be restrained by his assistants late in Saturday’s NIT second-round game between Dayton and Chattanooga.
With 2:11 to play and Grant’s Dayton squad trailing 75-67, Grant exploded on the officiating crew following a foul called against one of his players. Normally an even-keeled coach, Grant seemed to take exception with a Dayton player being grabbed by a UTC player while they were both going for a loose ball. Dayton was then called for a foul seconds later.
Grant was out near midcourt at one point. Assistants tried to push him back toward the Dayton bench while Grant continued to argue with the officials.
Grant was assessed a technical foul. Chattanooga made 3 free throws to go up 11 points. The Mocs went on to beat the Flyers 87-72.
With the loss, Grant wrapped his eighth season as the Dayton head coach with a 23-11 record. Grant has won at least 20 games in 4 consecutive seasons and in 6 of his 8 years leading the Flyers. But he only has 1 NCAA Tournament win as the Dayton head coach.
(Dayton went 29-2 during the 2019-20 season and surely would have gone to the NCAA Tournament had the tourney not been canceled.)
Grant coached Alabama from 2009-2015.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
