Once again, the Final Four was marvelous. Good ol’ Indianapolis, the heart of basketball country, hosted the climax of the best tournament in college sports.
All three games were played at a very high level. Frank Kaminsky stole the show on and off the court (please watch the Vine of him dancing if you haven’t yet), and the guard play by Duke was stellar all weekend.
However, all of this great play was overshadowed by the NCAA and the men dressed in the black and white.
The referees were miserable all tournament, but their ineptitude reached the pinnacle in Indianapolis.
Of course, the referees miscalled charges and blocks all weekend; that’s to be expected in college basketball.
What upsets me is that they have the technology to review any play in the game, yet they refuse to.
When Nigel Hayes grabbed his own rebound against Kentucky and put it back after the shot clock clearly expired, the refs weren’t allowed to review the play because it’s “not a reviewable play.”
That’s unbelievable. So, while the rest of the country knows what the right play is, the referees are clueless. The game was unfairly swayed in favor of Wisconsin, and they went on to ruin the only chance at perfection college basketball has seen since UNLV in 1992.
I think the solution to this is to just allow coaches to have two challenges per game like in the NFL. It’s easy, it’s fast, and it’s a good way to get the calls right (Thanks to my girlfriend for this brilliant idea).
One of the most ridiculous moments from the weekend came when the referees were actually able to review plays and got them entirely wrong.
The missed out-of-bounds call in the championship game was a prime example of this. Duke was awarded the ball in real time, but, after further review, video replay showed Justise Winslow clearly got a finger on a ball that went out on the Wisconsin baseline. Yet, somehow, the referees went with their initial call.
I just don’t know how they got those calls wrong. That call easily could have cost Wisconsin the game.
The replay system is broken. The refs operating the broken system are also broken. Two wrongs don’t make a right, NCAA. Fix this. Now.
