Disaster was averted, but it should never even have come to that. It was not Caitlin Clark's responsibility to avoid colliding with an Ohio State fan rushing the court after the Buckeyes overtime win against Iowa on Sunday.

Period. End of story. I wish. But the story continues, because more than a few fans think what happened on the floor of Value City Arena was just an unfortunate accident.

Bah. An unfortunate accident is slipping on ice hidden under snow, an unpreventable “oops.” The Clark collision was preventable; the fan should never have been able to race toward the OSU celebration at center court while the Hawkeyes were still on the floor.

Ohio State basketball: Arace: Buckeyes' win over Caitlin Clark, No. 2 Iowa was an event to remember

Kudos to Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith for apologizing to Clark. Classy move. Hopefully, the fan also will issue an apology, but I have my doubts, considering that immediately after the collision she got up and continued her path to center court, not even checking to see if Clark was OK.

Clark fortunately was not seriously injured, but smarter, safer and more strict security measures are needed moving forward. We all can agree on that. Where there is disagreement is over the collision itself.

Shocking to me is how some say Clark was just as responsible for getting knocked to the floor as the fan.

“Watch the video,” they say. “Clark could have avoided the contact. Stop being so dramatic.”

Give me a break. If that’s your opinion, do us all a favor and let your child get plowed by a fan during an athletic event, then chastise your kid for failing to see the body flashing into the field of vision a millisecond before impact. Ridiculous.

Even worse are those suggesting Clark extended her arms and shoved the fan, if not initiating the contact then at least making it look worse than it was. And then “flopping” as if she’d been shot.

I don’t see it that way. The body reacts unpredictably when surprised, but even if true I would not blame Clark for defending herself or “overreacting.” The arena of competition is physically challenging enough without worrying about having to dodge fans.

Ohio State assistant strength coach Anthony Schlegel was considered a hero for body slamming an intruding fan at Ohio Stadium during the 2014 Cincinnati game. Yet Clark is being questioned about her intentions as well as her inability to avoid the fan? Rubbish.

Did Browns give up on Mayfield too soon?

Baker Mayfield came within one possession of leading Tampa Bay to the NFC championship game, but his interception with 1:35 left Sunday ended the Bucs’ shot at upsetting Detroit.

Cleveland fans had seen it too often before, with the Browns' former No. 1 draft pick throwing a late pick to end all hope. But still, there had to be some lament over letting Mayfield get away. After all, Deshaun Watson has been disappointing, in part due to multiple injuries, and Joe Flacco was a feel-good story that quickly fizzled.

Mayfield, who began the season on his fourth roster in the past two seasons, was more than simply an adequate replacement for Tom Brady. The 2017 Heisman Trophy winner finished the regular season seventh in touchdown passes, ninth in passing yards, tied for 10th in interception percentage and 12th in passer rating.

It’s easy to argue the Browns blew it by parting with the former Oklahoma Sooner, but I think of Mayfield the way I thought of Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord. Moments of excellence followed by moments of messiness. Both are better than many want to give them credit, but not consistently good enough to lead their teams to the top.

Listening in

“Yes, probably won’t do it, though.” Nick Dunlap, a sophomore golfer at Alabama, answering whether he still had homework to do after winning the American Express tournament Sunday. Dunlap became the first amateur in 33 years to win a PGA Tour event.

Off-topic

In the latest attempt at becoming more fit, I am aiming for 10,000 steps a day, but wondering if that needs to be 10,000 all at once – e.g. on a treadmill – or for the day, which means only about 45 minutes is spent on “intentional” walking? What’s the verdict?

roller@dispatch.com

@rollerCD

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Caitlin Clark never should have been put in harm's way at Ohio State