Notre Dame player confronts official, restrained during chaotic incident

Notre Dame’s Tense Finale Against California

After a narrow 72-71 defeat, the atmosphere was charged as Notre Dame’s head coach Micah Shrewsberry and sophomore guard Cole Serta seemed to pursue the referee in frustration following the game. It was quite a sight.

Players and coaches from both teams needed to step in and prevent things from escalating. Commentators chimed in, speculating on what might have triggered such emotions. “He looked like he was after one of the officials. My guess? It was about that call during the game,” one broadcaster remarked.

The game had been competitive right up until the end. Serta had put Notre Dame ahead 67-63 with a layup, but the Golden Bears quickly cut the lead down to two.

A key moment arrived when Ames nailed a three-pointer and, despite a foul being called, the call was later overturned—which turned out to be critical. This allowed California to take the lead with a free throw.

Initially, officials reversed the decision, but after reviewing the play, they reinstated the foul call, sending Ames to the free-throw line.

In the end, while Notre Dame did score a potential game-winning shot, it wasn’t enough to clinch the game as the Golden Bears rallied to win.

During the tense moments, Serta was visibly agitated, following one of the officials closely. As the referee turned to assess the situation, Shrewsberry bumped into him, though thankfully, the official managed to leave without further incident.

Serta has seen increased responsibility in his second season, averaging around 20 minutes of play per game, a rise from 8.1 last year. He’s currently contributing around 9 points and 1.4 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 38% from the field.

Shrewsberry has been at the helm of the Fighting Irish since the 2023-24 season, holding a 38-43 record over three seasons, without yet guiding the team to the NCAA Tournament.