Dillon Brooks ejected from Washington State game for kicking opponent in the groin

Oregon is in a tight battle with the Washington State Cougars currently in Pullman, and the game just got much tougher for the Ducks.

Early in the first half, Oregon’s Dillon Brooks got tangled up with Washington State’s Ike Iroegbu going for a rebound and fell to the floor. While trying to get up, Brooks kicked his leg up, right into the groin of Josh Hawkinson.

After reviewing the play, the refs ruled it was a Flagrant 2 against Brooks, which equals an ejection for the remainder of the game. It does not carry over into the next game.

I can see where the refs would be on high alert for the so-called “extracurricular activities” as they were so described on the broadcast. After Duke’s Grayson Allen tripped everyone he could, this is exactly the sort of thing the refs are looking out for.

However, if you take a closer look at the replay, it’s pretty clear that Brooks looked to be swinging his leg up simply to protect himself.

If Brooks doesn't kick that right leg up, he’s probably going to miss the rest of the game anyway.

Personally, I think the refs jumped the gun by ejecting Brooks on a call like this and could've handled it much better and so do others.

It will be interesting to see how the Ducks recover without their leader for the rest of this game. What do you think? Was the kick intentional or not?