Livescore
A apparent food delivery gone wrong that briefly caused a stoppage in Wednesday night’s Loyola Chicago vs. Duquesne game may not have been the accidental moment of hilarity it initially appeared. Someone who appeared to be a delivery man, who walked right onto the court and into the center of action almost as if he was a part of the team, nearly collided with players in the corner as he was seemingly preparing to deliver to a customer.
On its face, it appeared that a delivery man had an oopsie captured on live television that briefly disrupted a Division I game in the Atlantic 10. Even the announcers were taken aback. “Somebody came on the floor on the far side,” said the TV commentary team. “I think that’s an Uber Eats sticker [on the bag]. Uber Eats, yes! Was he going to deliver McDonald’s to someone on the court?”
Multiple people inside the building in Pittsburgh on hand for the game tweeted on social media that it did indeed appear to be someone from Uber Eats who was walking onto the court. However, Duquesne officials on Thursday said they spoke with the individual and confirmed that it was a prank.
“This was a prank, planned in advance, done for internet exposure,” a statement released by Duquesne to Front Office Sports said. “We determined that the individual was wearing a mic while someone filmed him as he walked on to the court during active play. While the incident may have seemed funny at the time, and no harm was done, we are mindful that incidents like this can put players and officials at risk.”
More than that, the food delivery, which initially took awhile but reportedly found its home, may not have even been made at all for anyone but himself as part of a prop. Yes, the bag of McDonald’s was real and the drink, too, but Hansen said, “He just casually walked back into the stands with his McDonalds in hand.”
There are, of course, security and safety questions this saga prompts. How did the delivery man get into the arena? How did he get into the arena and get access to courtside?
Fortunately there was no one hurt in the stunt, but unfortunately for all of us, a fun moment of levity turned out to be a prank that could have gotten someone hurt.
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