It was a scary scene as referee Bert Smith collapsed on the baseline, but was alert and stable when he was taken off the floor.
The attention of the country is on Indianapolis during the month of March as the 2021 NCAA Tournament occurs in a central location for the first time. While much of the focus is on the players and coaches on the floor during game action, the referees play a pivotal role in the process. On Tuesday evening, veteran referee Bert Smith came into the limelight for scary reasons when he collapsed to the floor early in the first half of an Elite 8 game between the Gonzaga Bulldogs and the USC Trojans. One of the officials collapsed during the USC-Gonzaga game. pic.twitter.com/7LG5TdjsHO Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) March 30, 2021 Bert Smith, veteran NCAA official, just collapsed on the court.
