Maryland basketball star Jalen Smith apologized for his actions Sunday after a big win over Indiana.
The Terrapins squeaked out a 77-76 win over the Hoosiers, and Smith didn’t exactly handle it with a whole lot of class. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
He went up to Indiana fans in Bloomington and started taunting them. Head coach Mark Turgeon rushed over to get him to stop.
You can watch his actions below.
FINAL: No. 17 Maryland wins 77-76.
Things getting crazy postgame….Jalen Smith barks at the boo-ing Hoosier fans. Turgeon rips him off the court. @WISH_TV pic.twitter.com/mNxUCQ0kcP
— Olivia Ray (@OliviaRayWISH) January 26, 2020
@ncaa love the sportsmanship of Jalen Smith during the IU game today… yelling the f word during the game and this display after to fans. Love that for all the young kids watching…@TerrapinHoops at least the coach addressed it immediately. #sitdownJalen pic.twitter.com/1GTuUzyHEu
— Britt Gamble (@GambleBrittany) January 26, 2020
Late Sunday afternoon, Smith apologized on Twitter, and stated in part, “I let my emotions get the best of me and it won’t happen again. I have nothing but respect for all Indiana’s fans and players.”
I want to sincerely apologize to all the Indiana’s fans and players for how I acted at the end of the game. I let my emotions get the best of me and it won’t happen again. I have nothing but respect for all Indiana’s fans and players. Please forgive me and I wish you all the best
— Jalen Smith (@JalenSmith2000) January 26, 2020
I 100% understand why Turgeon reacted the way he did. I’d be pissed as all hell too if I was the coach of Maryland, and one of my players did that.
You go on the road, get a huge win and then one of your star players acts like an idiot. When you win, you need to win with class, especially as one of the best players on the floor.
Smith clearly didn’t do that at all when he made the decision to taunt Indiana fans.
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Sports are emotional at times, but you still need to learn to zip it up and act like you’ve been there before.
Smith needed to apologize, and he did. His conduct was embarrassing for his team, but he’s taken responsibility. At this point, we don’t need more to come from this. Just be better in the future.
