Ed Cooley launched a water bottle into the stands and hit a child sitting behind their bench out of frustration after the team's loss on Saturday night.
Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley has been suspended for one game after he launched a water bottle into the stands and hit a child after the team’s loss to Xavier on Saturday, the school announced.
Xavier held on to beat Georgetown 80-77 on Saturday night in Washington, though the Hoyas had a look to tie the game at the buzzer. But, after Malik Mack’s game-tying shot was off the mark, Cooley squeezed a water bottle he was holding and then threw it into the stands out of frustration. That bottle then hit a young child who was being held by his mother a few rows away.
An angry Ed Cooley chucks a water bottle into the crowd after the loss pic.twitter.com/rWgd5qKZCY
— Jared Kotler (@JaredKotler) December 21, 2025
Cooley immediately apologized when speaking with reporters after the game, and said he was going to reach out to the woman and her family.
"Really frustrated, and realized I threw my water bottle, and it hit [him] and his mom,” Cooley said, via the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Shelby Dermer. “Definitely out of character for me to be so frustrated, but really that's not called for. I'll call them and make amends to that. Just totally out of character, frustration. So I apologize to the fans, I apologize to our players, the university. Totally, totally out of character for me to be that way."
Cooley met with athletic director Lee Reed on Sunday, who then issued the suspension. The Big East said in a statement that it supported Georgetown’s decision to suspend Cooley in a statement on Sunday, too.
Cooley will now miss Monday night’s matchup with Coppin State. Associate head coach Jeff Battle will take his place.
"I met with Coach Cooley today to discuss the incident which occurred after last night's game against Xavier,” Reed said in a statement, in part. “I expressed that his conduct did not align with the standards we expect of our coaches, nor does it reflect the values of Georgetown Athletics or Georgetown University.”
Cooley, 56, is in his third season with the Hoyas this fall. He first took over the program ahead of the 2023-24 campaign after a 12-year run at Providence. Georgetown currently holds an 8-4 record this year entering Monday’s contest at Capital One Arena, which marks its last nonconference game of the season.
Category: General Sports
