Oakdale and Greenback boys basketball banned from 2024 playoffs, fined after fight

Five days after the boys basketball teams for Oakdale and Greenback had a fight that involved spectators rushing the court and players from both teams to the stands, the TSSAA instituted a postseason ban, placed them on probation and instituted a $2,250 in fines for each program.

Those fines include $1,000 for being placed on restrictive probation, $500 annually for a two-year probation and $250 in fines for athletes coming off the bench onto the floor.

Both teams were handed restrictive probation for the remainder of the 2023-24 school year, which forces them out of the playoffs.

Both programs can appeal this decision at the TSSAA Board of Control meeting on Jan. 11. 

More details on TSSAA punishment

Knox News received the TSSAA disciplinary letters sent to both schools. 

Oakdale and Greenback will also be placed on probation during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. This comes with a $500 annual fine. However, probation does not come with postseason bans. If either team has another incident during the probationary period, it can result in “severe consequences” the letter said. 

Both teams will be fined $250 for the spectators who went on the court during the game. 

Oakdale’s disciplinary letter said that the school would be fined $250 for “a player” who left the bench to join the altercation in the bleachers That player will also be given a two-game suspension.

Greenback’s letter said it would be fined $250 for the two players identified who left the bench as well as a two-game suspension.

In the officials’ report relaying the events of the fight, it said that the referees agreed they saw at least two players from each team participate in the altercation in the stands but that there were “almost certainly” more.  

The final detail of punishment was only mentioned in Greenback’s letter. The letter stated the TSSAA acknowledged the school administration‘s action to suspend a fan involved in the altercation for two games per Loudon County policy. This fan is required to reimburse the school for the $250 fine imposed by TSSAA for spectators rushing the floor before in returning to another game. 

What happened between Oakdale and Greenback

During a Dec. 15 regular-season game, Oakdale led 70-59 with 54.2 seconds left in the fourth quarter. A personal foul for illegal contact was called on an Oakdale player and a technical foul was given to a Greenback player for illegal contact during the dead ball.

While the officiating crew reported an Oakdale personal foul and Greenback dead ball technical foul the officials’ report said, “a fight erupted in the stands opposite the team benches between adult male spectators.” The altercation “quickly escalated” with fans rushing across the court to the opposite stands. 

Both coaches and school officials tried de-escalate the situation, however, “as the fighting continued it appeared that every player from both teams eventually left their bench area and moved onto the court towards the opposite stands area,” the report stated. 

The report said the lone police officer at the contest was seen immediately going into the stands where the fight began. 

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The referees deemed the situation on the court and in the stands uncontrollable as spectators and players were still actively trying to join the altercation. There also remained no security on the court and “unlikely to be anytime soon,” the report stated.  

The officials ended the game, alerting the official scorer and school site administrator who were both at the scorer's table of the final score.

Before the referees left, an object was thrown at the crew from what appeared to be the home team seating area behind the benches.

When the officials departed, altercations continued on and off the floor.

The cause of the fight in the stands was not mentioned in the report.

Toyloy Brown III is a Knox News sports reporter. Email toyloy.brown@knoxnews.com. On X, formerly Twitter, @TJ3rd_.