Watch: Brawl ends Inderkum-Riordan CIF Northern California playoff game in San Francisco
Officials stopped a CIF Northern California Regional Division I boys basketball playoff game between Inderkum High School of Sacramento and host Archbishop Riordan of San Francisco when a brawl broke out Thursday night, sullying what had been an intense game between teams with state championship aspirations.
Video obtained from the NFHS Network shows Riordan led 61-52 with 1:15 to play when Joey Rencher grabbed a rebound and was fouled by Savion Daniels of Inderkum in an attempt to stop the clock. Daniels wrapped his arms around Rencher to ensure a whistle. Riordan’s Achilles Woodson then reacted by shoving Inderkum’s Kevin Boone-Nelson in the back and chaos ensued.
The NFHS Network video shows several players leaving the Inderkum bench during the fray. Event staffers and coaches from both teams attempted to pull brawling players off each other. Adults from the stands also tried to break it up. Woodson wound up on his back, struck by someone, and warily got up moments later. The senior guard and team captain had scored 23 points. He went to local hospital for “precautionary measures,” Riordan coach Joey Curtin told Mitch Stephens of SBLive Sports, adding that Achilles “is OK.”
The foul, shove and melee happened on Inderkum’s side of the floor. Inderkum coaches and staffers were finally able to get their players off the floor and into the locker room after a moment. The three-man officiating crew tried to prevent players from getting at each other. Ultimately, officials called a stop to the game.
Curtin told SBLive that the scene, “was awful...horrible....pathetic. It just shouldn’t have happened. We were playing great basketball and for it to end like that....horrible....We shouldn’t have pushed anyone but pushing happens. It shouldn’t lead to full-blown punches. To the face. Look at the tape.”
CIF Director Ron Nocetti said late Wednesday night his Sacramento-based office will “wait for the report from the game officials before making any decisions” regarding the outcome of the game.
The options likely include declaring Riordan the winner or making the game a no-contest if the CIF finds too many players from both teams were excessive in their actions. Under CIF rules, any player who leaves the bench because of fighting is disqualified from the next game.
If Riordan is declared the winner, the Crusaders will advance to Saturday night’s semifinal round against Granada of Livermore, which beat top-seeded Clovis West of Fresno 70-62 in a quarterfinal. Riordan would be the host school, or the CIF could mandate that the game be played at a neutral site. A no-contest would mean there would be no winner and Granada would advance directly to a March 7 semifinal. Riordan posted a 61-52 final score on its MaxPreps team page. Inderkum’s best season ended with a 28-4 record.
Inderkum and the Natomas Unified School District is also looking into the incident. In a text to The Sacramento Bee, Inderkum coach Fred Wilson said he was “disappointed.”
This story was originally published March 3, 2023 at 12:26 AM.