What’s March Madness without a little controversy?
Over the years, the NCAA Tournament has been filled with questionable, confusing and downright bad calls, non-calls and other clumsy mistakes that, unfortunately, have become the story of a game.
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The 2019 NCAA Tournament was no exception. Even in the Final Four game between Virginia and Auburn, a foul called on Samir Doughty vs. Kyle Guy was the main storyline of the game – until it was revealed missed a crucial double dribble on Ty Jerome this could have resulted in an Auburn victory.
Recency bias will tell you that the frequency and egregiousness of these calls has never been higher, but there have been plenty of them over the years. With that, Sporting News takes a look at some of the most curious and puzzling calls in NCAA Tournament history:
Michigan State vs. Kansas, 1986 Sweet 16
The game clock stopped between 11 and 19 seconds with 2:21 remaining. The problem wasn’t noticed until Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote slammed his fist on the scorer’s table, but even then the clock wasn’t set. The game continued where it left off, with 2:21 remaining. This only became a problem when Kansas’ Archie Marshall scored the tying score with nine seconds remaining, sending the game into overtime. The Jayhawks made it to overtime and ultimately won 96-86. Heathcote argued that the game should have already been over at the time of Miller’s tipoff – and it would have been, but for the malfunction.
Seton Hall vs. Michigan, 1989 championship game
This call still resonates as one of the Most Controversial Judgments in NCAA Tournament History. Official John Clougherty called Seton Hall’s Gerald Green for hitting Rumeal Robinson when the latter attempted a pass while crossing the lane. Seton Hall led 79-78 with just three seconds remaining, but that lead disappeared when Robinson made both shots on one-on-one. Seton Hall couldn’t score on its final possession, and Michigan won its first national championship on a call that became one of the defining moments of the NCAA Tournament. Even Robinson, the recipient of the call, said he was surprised Clougherty called him at that point in the game. “Honestly, I thought it was a little weak to make that call at that time.”
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Michigan State vs. Georgia Tech, 1990 Sweet 16
Georgia Tech’s Kenny Anderson hit a last-second buzzer-beater to tie the game at 75 and send the Yellow Jackets into overtime against Michigan State. The only problem is that Anderson’s shot failed to beat the buzzer; the CBS television broadcast showed that the ball was still clearly in Anderson’s hands at the end of the game, meaning the Spartans should have advanced with a 75-73 victory. Officials didn’t overturn the call, however, and the Yellow Jackets ended up winning 81-80 in overtime.
North Carolina vs. Kansas, Final Four 1991
It may not have had any effect on the outcome of the game, but it was still weird to see UNC coach Dean Smith, considered one of the great gentlemen of the game, ejected from a Final Four. Smith was ejected with 35 seconds left and his team was losing 76-71. The official who issued the technical, Pete Pavia, called because Smith had left the coach’s box. Smith had done so to escort the fouling Rick Fox off the field – which he said was standard practice – and ask Pavie how much time he had left to make a substitution. That’s when Pavia hit him with the T, which Smith would later describe as “ridiculous” and “embarrassing.” UNC lost the game, 79-73.
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Maryland vs. Duke, Final Four 2001
A notable entry in the lexicon “The refs gave the game to Duke.” That game, which featured a 22-point comeback by the Blue Devils, saw controversial fouls (and no calls) that still infuriate Terps fans. The most notable came late in the game, with Duke leading Maryland 84-79. Maryland center Lonny Baxter was backing up Duke’s Carlos Boozer — both with four fouls — when the referees called Baxter for his fifth of the game. Duke ended up winning, but the fouls and seemingly preferential calls for the Blue Devils will always remain an unfortunate facet of this game.
Kentucky vs. Wisconsin, Final Four 2015
This wasn’t a particularly well-officiated game – pretty egregious for the fact that this is the Final Four we’re talking about – with poor decisions going both ways. Who could forget Kentucky’s Trey Lyles punching Josh Gasser in the face, for free? The one that perhaps had a more notable impact, however, came with 2:44 left and Kentucy leading 60-58. A wild Wisconsin possession ended with a Nigel Hayes putback that tied the game at 60. Except it was obvious it should have been a shot clock violation. Kentucky never led again in a 71-64 loss, its first of the season.
Wisconsin vs. Duke, 2015 National Championship
Another example of an unacceptable error on the part of those responsible for the rebroadcast. Duke led by five with less than two minutes remaining in the national championship game when the ball was knocked out of bounds. Most camera angles seemed to suggest that possession belonged to Duke, until CBS showed another angle that definitively proved Jahlil Okafor touched the ball last and possession belonged to Wisconsin. The officials still gave the Blue Devils possession. After the game (which Duke won 68-63), officials said they never saw the angle proving the ball belonged to Wisconsin. This caused quite a stir, including from tournament vice president Dan Gavitt, who said officials should have taken the time to make the right decision. It was a bad look on the part of the officials for getting it wrong and the NCAA for (allegedly) not providing them with the correct angle to look at.
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Gonzaga vs. North Carolina, 2017 National Championship
We have to give credit to the referees for one thing: at least they didn’t favor any particular team. But this game quickly became a stilted, disjointed mess that was less about the participants in the championship game than the whistle-happy officials. They committed four fouls in the first 78 seconds of the second half, nine in the first four minutes, 16 in the first eight minutes and 22 with eight minutes remaining. Besides the frequency of the mistakes, there was their veracity; there were definitely some tick-tock calls that probably should have been left out. In total, UNC and Gonzaga each committed 22 fouls. Carolina won the game 71-65.
Tennessee vs. Purdue, Sweet 16 2019
Virginia’s game against Auburn wasn’t the only controversial call made during the 2019 tournament. The first belongs to the fault called against Lamonte Turner in the Sweet 16 game between Tennessee and Purdue. The foul occurred late in regulation as Carsen Edwards attempted a 3-pointer that would have given the Boilermakers an 83-82 victory. He missed the shot, but Turner was called for the foul for hip-checking Edward’s outstretched leg in the air. Edwards made two of his foul shots to tie the game at 82, sending the game into overtime. Purdue ultimately won 99-94 — but not without Twitter getting angry trying to determine whether Turner should have been called for a foul.
Upon closer inspection… The foul that gave Carsen Edwards three free throws at the end of regulation should never have been awarded. Terrible mistake. pic.twitter.com/hGklaoBXlZ
– Kyle Boone (@Kyle__Boone) March 29, 2019
