Bobby Knight once got away with it, but not Nick Moore. Moore posted on social media Monday that he had been relieved of his duties as boys' basketball coach at Gary Lighthouse Prep Academy in Gary, Ind., after his ejection Friday from a game in which he launched a chair from the sideline toward one of the baskets.
As reported by the Chicago Tribune, video footage from Bowman Academy's 92-91 victory against the Lions shows Moore picking up a chair and hurling it toward the Eagles’ basket. Lighthouse was trailing 73-65 with 6:32 left in the game when a traveling call against one of his players triggered the outburst. An assistant had to stop Moore from throwing another chair after he tossed the first one.
Moore was ejected from the game. Lighthouse athletic director Lawrence Sandlin had been ejected earlier in the game.
“I have been relieved of my duties by LCPA as boys coach but would also like to thank the parents and players for letting me lead them day in and day out it was a pleasure and a great ride,” Moore wrote in a Facebook post on Monday.
Indiana High School Athletic Association commissioner Paul Neidig said he was trying to piece together what happened based on reports from Bowman and game officials and what he was able to see on the video, which was posted on Twitter.
According to the Tribune, Moore took over at Lighthouse in the footsteps of his stepfather, Marvin Rea, who died in a car crash in December 2017. Kenya Stines coached the rest of the 2017-18 season before Moore, who was an assistant under Rea, was hired as coach. Moore also played for Rea at Bowman, helping lead the 2009-10 team to the Class 1A state title.
Indiana basketball fans of a certain age may have experienced flashbacks to the day in February 1985 when then-IU basketball coach Knight flung a chair across the court at Assembly Hall during a loss to Purdue.
Of Friday's incident, Anderson said he was just happy no students were involved.
“We’re often critical of our student-athletes for sportsmanship,” Anderson said. “I’d like to commend the student-athletes for fighting hard in a rival game and handling themselves appropriately.”
