Indiana Releases Statement on Metal Piece Fall in the Hall During the Hoosiers, Buckeyes Game

Indiana University released a statement on the one-pound metal piece that fell from the scoreboard during the Hoosiers' matchup versus Ohio State on Saturday night. There are no other concerns with the scoreboard after inspection.

© Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Moments before the second half started in the Hoosiers' basketball game versus Ohio State on Saturday night, a metal piece from the center of the scoreboard fell to the floor in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

Indiana University released a statement saying the piece that fell from the board was an unused unistrut bracket 18 inches in length and just over one pound.

A unistrut is a metal framing system that features a unique weldless connection and is easily adjustable and reusable according to UnistrutStore.com.

"It is believed that the unused piece was left from the original installation of the Daktronics scoreboard, which occurred seven years ago, and the vibration from the crowd and music caused the piece to come loose and fall at halftime of the game," the report said.

Originally people were told the piece weighed anywhere from 10-15 pounds as Buckeyes head coach Chris Holtmann stated in his press conference. He was concerned with how close the piece was to freshman forward Brice Sensabaugh and was worried about resuming play.

"Obviously it ended up fine, but that would have been a significant, significant thing and thank God that it did not injure Brice or any player for that matter," Holtmann said.

The game continued on without any further complications minus the fact that Twitter users were reporting their videos of the flailing object expressing concern for the players.

A piece of metal fell from the scoreboard at Assembly Hall and almost hit Brice Sensabaugh 😳 pic.twitter.com/dionTes2Cs

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) January 29, 2023

HoosiersNow.com was told the scoreboard was lowered Saturday night for further inspection ahead of the women's game versus Rutgers on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.

"The scoreboard was inspected by IU facility operations staff and no other unused or loose pieces were found," the report stated.

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