Editor's Note (Trigger Warning): The following story talks about suicide and links to violent imagery from the show White Lotus.
Duke men's basketball is going to have a hard time living this one down. In a major upset in the Final Four, Houston beat the No. 1 seed and will be advancing to the finale to play the Florida Gators in the championship. Houston won 70-67 in the last few seconds of the game after sinking their three free throws.
HOUSTON WITH A COMEBACK FOR THE AGES 😱
THE COUGARS ARE OFF TO THE #NATIONALCHAMPIONSHIP GAME 👏#MarchMadness @UHCougarMBK pic.twitter.com/0VKD3tixoi
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) April 6, 2025
After the game, social media went into an uproar with fans turning Jason Isaac's character, Timothy Ratliff, from White Lotus, who is a Duke University alum, into a meme. The university has expressed concern of the show using their likeness since Isaac's character also contemplates suicide and killing his wife while wearing the shirt.
“Duke appreciates artistic expression and creative storytelling,” vice president for communications, marketing and public affairs, Frank Tramble, told The New York Times in an email, “but characters prominently wearing apparel bearing Duke’s federally registered trademarks creates confusion and mistakenly suggests an endorsement or affiliation where none exists.”
Tramble added that White Lotus “not only uses our brand without permission, but in our view uses it on imagery that is troubling, does not reflect our values or who we are, and simply goes too far.”
In addition to the scene where Isaac's character contemplates murder-suicide, he also has a nude scene in the show's third episode that aired on Max last month.
Social Media Reacts To Duke Men's Basketball Loss
Article Continues BelowSocial media wasted no time in creating memes relating the Duke loss and Isaac's character on White Lotus.
“ALL TIME COLLAPSE BY DUKE BASKETBALL WHAT IS THE FOOTBALLING EQUIVALENT OF THIS MOMENT?” an X user wrote trying to come up with a football similarity.
ALL TIME COLLAPSE BY DUKE BASKETBALL 🤯
WHAT IS THE FOOTBALLING EQUIVALENT OF THIS MOMENT? pic.twitter.com/WszoD1fosG
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) April 6, 2025
“the duke white lotus picture is all over the timeline so I’m assuming they really f—ed up,” one user commented.
“Everyone is like “oh white lotus isn’t good” but they made this a meme and Duke had an all time choke job the night before the season finale,” a user wrote using an image of the graphic scene.
“Could the creators of #TheWhiteLotus have hoped for anything more than that beautifully epic #Duke meltdown to promote tonight's big finale? Priceless, and almost as great as the show itself. Can't wait,” another user posted.
Could the creators of #TheWhiteLotus have hoped for anything more than that beautifully epic #Duke meltdown to promote tonight's big finale? Priceless, and almost as great as the show itself. Can't wait. pic.twitter.com/NaOUiMZvA8
— Reel Fanatic (@FanaticReel) April 6, 2025