The NCAA admitted that officials botched a key play late in Saturday's NCAA Tournament game between Northwestern and Gonzaga.
A spirited second-half run by Northwestern ended abruptly when a missed goaltending call resulted in a four-point swing in Gonzaga's favor. Video replays showed that Gonzaga's Zach Collins put his hand up through the rim and net to block a shot by Northwestern's Dererk Pardon. A Pardon basket would have cut Northwestern's deficit to three points with 4:57 to go in regulation.
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The situation went from bad to worse when Northwestern coach Chris Collins was given a technical foul for storming onto the court during play to argue the no-call. Gonzaga hit both free throws to go up seven.
Northwestern ended up losing 79-73, so the missed call could very well have affected the outcome. Collins certainly believes that's the case.
“We had all the momentum,” Collins told reporters after the game ( per Yahoo Sports ). “A guy puts his hand through the rim. It’s a very easy call in my opinion, but it’s an honest mistake. Referees are human beings. They’re here for a reason because they’re outstanding officials. They made a call, so we’ve got to live with it. Do I think in my heart if Dererk gets that call and we cut it to three that we have a great chance to win? Yes, I believe we have a great chance to win if the correct call is made.”
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The NCAA's postgame statement, in full:
With 4:57 remaining in this evening’s second-round game between Gonzaga and Northwestern, the officials missed a rules violation when a Gonzaga defender put his arm through the rim to block a shot. Rule 9, Section 15 of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Book covers Basket Interference and Goaltending. Article 2.a.3 states that basket interference occurs when a player reaches through the basket from below and touches the ball before it enters the cylinder. Replays showed the Gonzaga defender violated this rule, which should have resulted in a scored basket by Northwestern.
Subsequently, with 4:54 remaining in the game and based on bench decorum rules outlined in the rules book, a technical foul was assessed to Northwestern head coach Chris Collins for coming onto the floor to argue the non-call while the ball was in play.
You be the judge.
Northwestern's coach got a tech for this, but he has a point 🤔 pic.twitter.com/9xFS9n5ves
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 18, 2017
Still, it was one heck of a comeback by Northwestern, which trailed by as many as 22 points in the second half. A furious 23-8 run was highlighted by a Vic Law putback dunk that brought Northwestern fans to their feet.
"I think we were down 22, cut it to five, should have been three, I guess, with the statement from the NCAA," Collins said after the NCAA's statement was read to him during his postgame session with the media. "Not sure what all that means. All I know is I'm flying home. It's nice. Thank you for the statement."
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