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Big 12 Fans Unload on Glass Floor Court at Conference Tournament

Originally posted on Heartland College Sports
By Pete Mundo | Last updated Mar 12, 2026 7:52 PM ET

The Big 12 Conference basketball tournament continued with the quarterfinals on Thursday, and there was plenty of discussion around the Big 12’s usage of an LED glass floor. Earlier this week, a player said it gave him a migraine, while the general consensus has been mixed, at best. Fast forward to Thursday, and in the Texas Tech vs. Iowa State, a couple of Tech players left the game due to minor injuries, which could have been caused by the glass floor. And that sent Big 12 X into a frenzy, including quotes from players, fans and media.

Christian Anderson on if his injury would’ve happened on a wood floor:

“Not necessarily.”

LeJuan Watts — who also left the game with an injury — said it was extremely slippery.

“Let’s just do it on wood.”#TexasTech
— Cole Banker (@colebankertv) March 12, 2026

I don't want to pile on but I think if you're up like this at 5 and under, take the dawgs out. There are too many guys slipping right now. Tech just lost like 3 dudes in 5 minutes.
— Chris Williams (@ChrisMWilliams) March 12, 2026

That ridiculous floor. Get rid of it #Big12. Only positive of losing will be not having to play on that floor.
— Mark Ŧ (@RaiderMark) March 12, 2026

……….. does anyone really think this is an acceptable basketball court https://t.co/pEenrFt8sl pic.twitter.com/dqTRzVaCFs
— DC Nik (@JustASportGuy) March 12, 2026

Friendly reminder that Brett Yormark genuinely believes tortillas are a bigger threat than actually changing the playing surface to glass…
— Coyote Raider (@CoyoteRaider) March 12, 2026

Texas Tech's Christian Anderson leaves the game with an apparent groin injury after slipping and falling to the ground.

Definitely been more players slipping on this floor at Big 12 tourney than usual.

This should probably be a one-and-done for this court at Big 12 tourney.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) March 12, 2026

Can we have a wood floor by next session, @Big12Conference? This gimmick is going to cost someone big time.
— Travis (@travisclones) March 12, 2026

That’s just a sample of what you can find scrolling through social media on Thursday. The positive feedback has been almost non-existent, other than it kind of looks cool. But like anything else, the question is, “at what potential cost?”

Any player suffering any kind of injury on this surface is not worth the light up court that is not the main draw for any casual or die-hard fan who elects to buy tickets to the Big 12 basketball tournament. And yes, it may be part of the future, but it doesn’t seem like it’s there yet. And that’s OK. The Big 12 has been innovative in a lot of ways, and they can’t all be home runs. It seems if most people around the Big 12 have their way, the Big 12 will be back to a hardwood court in 2027.

This article first appeared on Heartland College Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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