Mizzou coach hints USC fans spit on her players, Ray Tanner says no confirmed reports

Missouri women’s basketball coach Robin Pingeton was asked Tuesday whether South Carolina fans spit on her players after Sunday’s heated game. She did not deny the allegation.

“Let me choose my words carefully,” Pingeton started when asked the question, according to Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

“I was really disappointed with some things that transpired. There’s no place in our game for that. Fans have to be better all around. Our side, their side. These are daughters. There were some things that were really unfortunate that transpired,” Pingeton continued. “Not only verbally but some other things you alluded to.”

South Carolina and Missouri have quickly established a heated rivalry over the past three weeks, and this past Sunday’s game featured a near-brawl between Tigers and Gamecocks players that resulted in two ejections, two unsportsmanlike fouls and a technical on Mizzou’s bench.

In her postgame press conference, Pingeton did not mention the alleged spitting incident. The crowd at Colonial Life Arena loudly booed the Tigers throughout warmups and the game itself, and the accusation of spitting surfaced on Twitter shortly after the game ended. South Carolina fans who say they were close to the Mizzou bench have pushed back on social media, saying the incident did not happen.

“The commitment to a secure environment for everyone at our home games, including fans, student-athletes, coaches and staff from the home and visiting teams is of the utmost importance,” South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner said in a statement. “In anticipation of this rivalry game, the athletics department provided security for the Missouri basketball team, above its standard operating procedure. Upon hearing the accusations regarding our crowd’s behavior towards the Missouri team, the athletics department conducted a review of our operations from the game, including interviews with staff and security personnel. In this review, we received no confirmation of the alleged behavior directed at the visiting team by fans at the game.”

This is not the first time fans at a South Carolina-Missouri game have been accused of aggressive taunting, though last time it was the other fan base who reportedly went too far — during the team’s first matchup on Jan. 7, several Mizzou fans reportedly referred to South Carolina players and coach Dawn Staley as “thugs,” drawing accusations of racism.

This story was originally published January 30, 2018 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Mizzou coach hints USC fans spit on her players, Ray Tanner says no confirmed reports."