Four players suspended after bench-clearing brawl between rivals Kansas and Kansas State

Four players have been suspended following a bench-clearing brawl in the final seconds of a basketball game between rivals Kansas and Kansas State, the Big 12 said Wednesday.

Jayhawks forward Silvio De Sousa was suspended by the conference for 12 games for his role in the melee during his team’s 81-60 victory over Kansas State on Tuesday.

Kansas coach Bill Self said of De Sousa in a statement. “As I said last night, we are disappointed in his actions, and there is no place in the game for that behavior.”

De Sousa’s teammate David McCormack, a sophomore forward, got a two-game suspension. For Kansas State, redshirt junior forward James Love III was suspended for eight games while freshman forward Antonio Gordon got a three-game timeout.

Before the Tuesday fight broke out, Kansas State guard DaJuan Gordon stole the ball from De Sousa near midcourt as the latter appeared to be dribbling to run the clock out.

His layup shot was blocked by De Sousa, who stood over Gordon as he lay on the court, near the Wildcats bench. It’s unknown whether he said anything.

A brawl ensued, spilling into the courtside seats.

Videos show that, at one point, De Sousa apparently threw punches and picked up a stool, but it does not appear he hit anyone with it.

The 6-foot-9 De Sousa was born in Angola and played his high school ball in Florida. He is a bench player for the Jayhawks and has rarely logged more than 20 minutes in a game this season.

The Jayhawks are the No. 3 team in the nation.

Both programs on Wednesday were reprimanded for violations of Big 12 sportsmanship policies.

“This kind of behavior cannot be tolerated and these suspensions reflect the severity of last evening’s events,” said Commissioner Bob Bowlsby.

“I am appreciative of the cooperation of both institutions in resolving this matter.”