Pac-12, ACC acknowledge officiating blunders from weekend games
Two conferences apologized Sunday evening for late-game officiating errors over the weekend in high-profile games.
A Pac-12 official told ESPN.com that referees "missed the call" when they didn't assess Arizona State's Jahii Carson for a technical foul when he hung on the rim following a breakaway dunk in the final second of the Sun Devils' double overtime win over Arizona. The Pac-12 wasn't alone because an ACC official acknowledged to the Washington Post that a failure to switch the possession arrow in the second half of Duke's victory over Maryland on Saturday night led to the Blue Devils receiving an extra possession.
Of the two teams on the short end of the blunders, Maryland probably has a bigger gripe since an extra possession could have made a difference in a game the Terps lost by two points.
Had the possession arrow been switched properly, Maryland would have received the ball after a held ball occurred with 6:39 left in the game. Instead Duke received possession and parlayed that into a running hook by Amile Jefferson to tie the score at 56.
The technical foul on Carson almost certainly wouldn't have altered the outcome of the Arizona-Arizona State because the dunk gave the Sun Devils a three-point lead with half a second remaining. Even if the Wildcats sink two foul shots – no guarantee the way Arizona shoots free throws – they still would have needed to go the length of the floor to avoid losing by one point.
The one high-profile questionable call that has not been acknowledged by league officials was the decision of ACC referees not to award continuation to T.J. Warren on a late basket that could have helped NC State seal an upset of Syracuse. The Orange then came back to win by one on a steal and layup by C.J. Fair with six seconds to go.
In fairness to the ACC, however, that was a call that probably doesn't require an apology. It was a judgment call that could have gone either way.
