The crowd at Stegeman Coliseum chose the absolute worst time to defend the free-falling honor of UGA basketball.
With the score knotted at 67 Wednesday night and less than one second of game clock remaining, Mississippi State guard Quinndary Weatherspoon approached the line for the first of two crucial free throws.
Weatherspoon missed on the first try.
However, coinciding with the attempt, an unidentified fan hurled am object onto the playing court.
The off-target toss (landing roughly 10 feet from the guard) didn't faze Weatherspoon during the initial miss; but it was enough for the referees to call a technical foul on the home-standing Bulldogs.
As such, the slate would be wiped clean for Weatherspoon (game-high 31 points), whose fortuitous roll on the second "first" free throw ended up clinching Mississippi State's 68-67 win – thus dropping Georgia to its seventh straight defeat and a deflating 1-12 record in SEC play.
HERE'S THE CONTROVERSIAL MOMENT OF THE GAME
The shenanigans didn't end there.
While the officials conferred a few seconds after the fan's object had reached the floor, UGA head coach Tom Crean grabbed the scorer's-table microphone and yelled, "Stay with us. Don't throw anything on the court!"
It's been a frustrating first year in Athens for Crean. Throughout this recent torrent of close losses, the coach has been, at times, publicly critical of his players.
Crean's also trying to overcome the national perception of being a top-notch salesman (UGA recently signed the nation's No. 2 recruit for next season, Anthony Edwards) ... but falling short of sustained success on the court.
Of course, Wednesday's loss ushered in a new type of setback, with the fans playing a direct role in the final result.
On the plus side, Georgia trailed by 11 points at the half and nearly forced overtime, despite allowing MSU to shoot 49 percent from the field and 41 percent from three-point range.
