Basketball Game Ends In Assault: Providence Man Wielding Knife Attacks Ref

Things got heated on a basketball court after a team made a late comeback, prompting an audience member to assault the ref with a knife.

A video, which quickly made the rounds online, showed a man approaching a basketball referee at a Rhode Island high school game. Christopher Cherry was clearly unhappy with one of the decisions referee Isaiah Fuller had made.

What Happened: The footage allegedly shows Cherry marching onto the basketball court in John Hope Settlement House. Holding a bag in one hand, he telegraphs a punch from about three miles away. The loose and inaccurate swing misses the ref by a mile. But it was enough of a warning for people to move back.

• The ref, noting something was going down, moved players and watchers back. Cherry then decided to ramp it up a notch, seeing as his punches were so wildly off target. Instead of trying to hit him again, he allegedly pulled out a knife at the basketball game.
• By this point, all the people around the man have cleared back. He is wielding a deadly weapon in anger at the ref, clearly out of control.

Fess up

Cherry knew what he had done was wrong. He turned himself in not long after pulling the knife on the basketball coach. He had made a stupid mistake and was willing to face the consequences. His temper had gotten the better of him.

• As a result, Cherry is facing charges of felony assault, two counts of simple assault, and disorderly conduct. Also, the judge has set his bond at $2,500, and he has been instructed to have no contact with anyone who was at the basketball game.

However, it was the quick thinking of the basketball ref in the face of a knife that may have saved lives. “From the moment we sensed the environment becoming unsafe, I made the decision to remove our players immediately, as their safety and well-being remain my top priority whenever we travel from city to city,” he said to NBC 10.

The TAFT For The People Tour, the event run by the ref, is supposed to bring people together. However, tensions ran high on this particular day.