Benches cleared during a massive brawl that broke out at a high school basketball in Englewood, New Jersey and players for one of the teams say racist language and slurs were being hurled at them before the fracas. Fans from Dwight Morrow High School and Dumont High School also came out of the stands and began fighting during the game.
"Fans jumped in. People from Dumont, they jumped in. And then it escalated from there," Dwight Morrow senior Kerron Pitts told New York's CBS2.
Pitts and his teammates told CBS2 that some of Dumont's white players were yelling racial slurs at some of the Black players from Dwight Morrow.
"The N-word, animals, monkeys. That type of stuff," Pitts added.
Pitts' father, Keith Pitts, also confirmed that he heard the racial slurs prior to the brawl taking place.
"It's horrible. Horrible. These times and days, still dealing with this for years now," Keith Pitts said.
Following the brawl, the remainder of the game was canceled in the third quarter as a result.
Dwight Morrow High School announced that the school has decided to cancel the remainder of the varsity and junior varsity basketball teams' seasons due to the brawl. Some Dwight Morrow players also stated that they believed that Dumont High School should end its' team's season for their role .
"Spectators will not be permitted to attend the remaining winter events held at Dwight Morrow High School," Englewood Public School District superintendent Jennifer Sifuentes said in a letter that was sent to parents.
Spectators will be able to watch Dwight Morrow High School athletic events on YouTube for the remainder of the school year.
The Englewood Police Department is currently investigating the incident.
