No. 1-ranked Virginia topped unranked Louisville in their ACC Tournament game Thursday, but perhaps more noteworthy was what happened afterward.
An awkward moment ensued when Virginia coach Tony Bennett went in for a postgame handshake with Louisville counterpart David Padgett, only for Padgett to give him an eye contact-less shake before brushing right past.
Here is that handshake. Fixed. pic.twitter.com/XeKGEHta7L
— Kara Renee (@UVaKareBear) March 8, 2018
Of course, Padgett’s semi-snub failed to escape the watchful eye of the Internet, and within minutes the Cardinals coach was taking heat.
Padgett completely blew off Bennett in the handshake line. #ACCTourney
— Craig Henderson (@c_hndrsn) March 8, 2018
Hey Coach Padgett. Stay classy. @LouisvilleMBB h/t @akaMeekster #Wahoowa pic.twitter.com/hudfBB7dzw
— John Schick (@JohnSchick) March 8, 2018
Man, Dave Padgett's handshake blow by on Tony Bennett was solid. Bennett looks up to make eye contact and Padgett just stares straight ahead.
— Brian Barbour (@briancbarbour) March 8, 2018
Padgett literally turned his head to avoid eye contact. Classy. https://t.co/okewl7kHiZ
— AllThingsUVA (@AllThingsUVA) March 8, 2018
@howardfineman Any thoughts on L’ville HC showing a lack of respect and zero class towards Tony Bennett in the handshake line today? #ACCTourney
— El SeGundo (@WWEHOOS) March 8, 2018
I saw that too…for a rookie coach, that was a classless move!!
— Chi Kapoor (@CHIGGY45) March 8, 2018
As for where Padgett may have been coming from, Louisville forward Dwayne Sutton told reporters after the contest that he was upset with the Virginia bench’s in-game celebrations. He also mentioned a “disrespectful” dunk by Cavaliers guard Kyle Guy at the end when the game had already been decided.
Dwayne Sutton says he was frustrated by Ty Jerome and the Virginia bench’s celebrations, which led to a small dust-up at the end of the game. Called Kyle Guy’s exclamation-point dunk “disrespectful.”
— Jeff Greer (@jeffgreer_cj) March 8, 2018
The 75-58 loss was also likely frustrating for the Cardinals since it may now make it especially difficult for them to land an NCAA Tournament berth. As for Padgett, who took over on as an interim for Rick Pitino before the season, at least he didn’t curse during the handshake like this fellow college coach did.
H/T The Spun
