89rabbit
January 20th, 2007, 12:25 AM
http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070118/SPORTS/701180351/1002
Review says game-winning shot was invalid
Jacks' win won't be overturned, but officials have been reprimanded
By Terry Vandrovec
[email protected]
Published: January 18, 2007
The outcome of the game will not be reversed, but a review by the Women's Basketball Officiating Consortium has determined that officials misapplied NCAA rules in deciding to count the final shot in South Dakota State's 59-58 victory at Minnesota on Sunday.
Coordinator of officials Patty Broderick said Maria Boever's layup - a shot that appeared to have come after the game clock reached 0.0, but before the red LED lights attached to the backboard lit up - should not have counted because the clock is the determining factor.
The officials - John Morningstar, Ron Applegate and Amy Bonner - determined that the shot was good at the time it happened. They then reviewed the play on a courtside monitor, allowing Jackrabbits coach Aaron Johnston access to the replay before ultimately allowing the shot.
That was another miscue by the officials, according to Broderick.
"They didn't procedurally handle the review of the video properly," she said. "Obviously coaches aren't supposed to be around. It was one mistake after another. They got caught up in the emotion of it." . . .
For their misunderstanding of the rules, the officials have been privately reprimanded, said Broderick. Possible disciplinary actions range from a written or verbal censure to a suspension.
"When they reviewed the monitor, they looked for the red light to see if the ball was out of her hands - but it's 'triple zeroes' that determine whether a shot should count or not," explained Broderick, adding that the outcome of a game cannot be overturned once the officials leave the court. "They misapplied the NCAA rule, so we have to level disciplinary action at the three officials."
However, "triple zero" can mean different things depending on where the decimal point is placed.
In the 2007 NCAA basketball rule book, Part B of Rule 5, Section 7, Article 2 states: "In games with a 10th of a second game clock and where an official courtside monitor is used, the reading of 0.00 on the game clock is to be used to determine whether a try for goal occurred before or after the expiration of time in any period."
There is a difference between 0.0 - as the clock at Williams Arena read - and 0.00.
The NCAA women's basketball office did not return a call seeking comment. Broderick said that beginning this season, each school is required to have a clock that counts 10ths of a second.
It's her understanding, then, that the game ends at 0.0. When asked about the contradictory wording within the NCAA rule, she said, "I don't even know if that's ever been brought to their attention."
That lack of clarity is a problem, according to SDSU's coach. . . . (read more)