"Ain't no malice at the palace" "All that to do nothing" - College hoops fans react to chaotic ending in Southland Conference Tournament final

The McNeese State Cowboys won the Southland Conference final, beating the Lamar Cardinals 63-54 on Wednesday evening. The win punched their ticket to the Big Dance in consecutive seasons.

With the Cowboys leading 55-46 with 1:46 on the clock, a huge scuffle broke out between the teams that spilled over to the sidelines, resulting in several technical fouls being handed out by the referees after a lengthy review.

College basketball fans on X had mixed reactions to the scuffle in the Conference championship game, with one reacting:

"All that to do Nothing"

Some fans weren't impressed by the quality of the scuffle.

"Ain’t no Malice at the Palace," one fan tweeted.

"That was weak," another fan tweeted.

"Basketball players cannot fight lmao. It's sad," one fan tweeted.

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Southland Conference champs make back-to-back March Madness appearances

The win in the Southland Conference Tournament championship game by the McNeese State Cowboys punched their ticket into the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year and only the fourth time in their history.

Before coach Will Wade arrived as coach of McNeese State in 2023, the Cowboys had an 11-23 record and were second-bottom in the Southland Conference. Since his arrival, they have a 57-10 overall record (40-2 conference).

In Wade's first season, the Cowboys had an incredible turnaround and managed a 30-4 record, winning the conference championship game before repeating once again and punching their March Madness ticket in consecutive seasons for the first time after a 27-6 record this season.

During his postgame news conference after winning the championship game, Wade was emotional about his team's achievement.

“I mean, you're gonna make me cry," Will Wade said. "I don't even have any words. I'm a pretty confident guy and I'm actually pretty positive most of the time but in my wildest dreams I did not think it would go this well. I'd be lying if I told you I did…we went 40-2 in the league the last two years.

"We won 30 games and 27 games and we’ve broken almost every record in the books…to see the community and how much it means to everybody that means a lot to me and a lot to our players. It’s been awesome."

The Cowboys came into the game on an 11-game winning streak and were ranked No. 58 in the NET and No. 57 in the overall KenPom rankings. Bracketologists project the Cowboys to be a No. 12-seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The Southland Conference champions have never won a March Madness game, losing all three they have been involved in.