In this Overtime edition of Dash to the Desert Episode 2, Vin Parise and Scott Williams discuss the officiating through the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
Seton Hall caught a tough break when the referees, going by the letter of the law, gave a flagrant foul to Desi Rodriguez in the final minute of their First Round loss to Arkansas. The ensuing free throws gave the Razorbacks a 4-point lead with 18.3 seconds, an insurmountable deficit for the Pirates to make up.
[cta id=’3689′]
In Second Round action, Northwestern had all the momentum vs. one-seed Gonzaga when the officials missed a Bulldog put his hand up through the rim to block an NU layup that would have made it a 3-point game with five minutes left. Instead, Northwestern coach Chris Collins got a technical foul (rightfully so) for arguing the non-call, and Gonzaga regained the momentum on their way to the Sweet 16.
Rhode Island never hit the Bonus in their Round of 32 game vs Oregon – in either half – as they took only eight free throws to the Ducks’ twenty-seven. In fact, Oregon made ten more foul shots than Rhody ATTEMPTED, a huge disparity in what turned out to be a 3-point game.
