Video: Scary footage of referee getting knocked out less than 1 second into match

Crawford was on the receiving end of a accidental elbow from Vanderbilt’s center Damian Jones. The hit had so much power in it that it sent the referee crashing to the ground, unconscious. By the looks of it, he was asleep before he hit the floor.

After the incident, he was treated by medics in the middle of the court for around 10 minutes while the crowd inside the Barclays Centre remained eerily silent.  He was taken off the court on a stretcher with a neck brace and brought to the hospital for further treatment.

Vanderbilt’s tweeted a positive update on his condition after the game.

Just got an update on referee Rick Crawford from the @NBCSports folks, and it looks like Crawford is coherant and moving extremities.

— VandyMBB (@VandyMBB) November 30, 2014