Georgia-A&M timing error
 

Why those 5.6 seconds were especially valuable to Georgia Bulldogs - Men's College Basketball Blog- ESPN

This is REALLY tough.

I can't say for sure whether I'd notice this in real time, especially with a frantic final sequence playing out in front of me and the "comfort" of knowing the clock had properly started.

Wow, that is very tough. I have seen timers forget to start it before, but I've never seen the clock freeze while running. I check the clock periodically throughout the game, but, I'm not watching it every few seconds during live ball. I would have missed this also.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

I only think one of the off officials would have seen this, but the play is so critical they do not take their eyes of plays like this at this point of the game. And only if the clock was in the view, which I doubt it was.

Peace

Assuming for the sake of argument that someone on the sideline started yelling that the clock wasn't running and the C official looked and noticed it what should be done? And let's say the C noticed it any time before the ball was passed into the post player.

I get the outcome, but it's a bad outcome. Had the player(s) known the clock was expiring, I'm sure a shot would've been attempted earlier.

I'd almost be happier to see a rule that provided for a throw-in with 5.6 seconds left based on the ball location when the clock stopped erroneously.

Why? They ran what they wanted to run, and got the attempt they were looking for. Everyone knew they started with about 10 seconds. They don't need a do-over. The fact the clock didn't run or horn went off, doesn't change what happened and doesn't change that they got their shot.

Their shot was unsuccessful because they got fouled. The foul and the shot were wiped off by the stopwatch at the monitor. So I'm not sure what point you are making.

That is completely wrong. They didn't get what they wanted at all, they thought there was time on the clock and kept working for a better shot. The fact that the clock stopped likely changed everything.

if the foul occured before time ran out then shoot 2. I'm saying they don't need a doover.

Huh?

Do you know the situation?

5.6 on the clock when it stops erroneously with a live ball in play. 7 seconds later there's a shooting foul.

I watched the play. From my count I had a 6 count. Maybe a bit over 6. They had the time, and they knew how much time there was. There is no "look" for a great shot under 10 seconds.

You said they got the attempt they wanted. That's not true. The attempt was waved off as well as the foul that prevented the attempt from being successful.

The rules do not allow for a do-over and the officials handled the situation correctly. But saying they got the shot they wanted is 100% inaccurate because they didn't get a shot attempt.

Some errors just don't have fair solutions. This is one of them.

This result isn't fair as the players (presumably) relied on the actual clock

A do over isn't fair to the defense, who prevented Georgia from getting a shot off in the time allowed.

Basketball, like life, isn't always fair.

They got the shot attempt they wanted. They were just late. There are plenty of instances where shots are released AFTER time expires. The attempt they got off wouldn't have counted. But it's an attempt.

Who knows if the defense prevented it, though?

No, they didn't. They based their action and shot on what showed on the clock...they thought they had time to make another pass and did. The clock completely screwed them.

Probably. Probably not.

NCAA officials have this easy. They can use the monitor and a stopwatch to determine whether or not the foul counts and how much time should remain in the game.

NFHS officials can't go that route. Let's discuss what you should do if this happens in your high school game. To me that's more interesting.

I don't think they have it so easy on this play. There was no going back to make it right. It isn't like the clock ran extra after a whistle where they can use the monitor to get it fixed. When the clock stops that early and isn't noticed until after the shot, there is no easy to it. The result isn't "right" no matter what they can do.

You're making a HUGE assumption there with little proven factual basis. Assuming he had the ability to know where the clock was, didn't he know it was at 8, 7, and 6 seconds before it froze at 5.6? He stops his dribble at about 6.5 left with the clock still running, and passes. Neither he nor the player he passes to can know the clock will stop, so if they are truly in the know about the time, they know they have a little more than 5 seconds at that point. What does the player that gets the pass do? He immediately passes it back to a player and sees 2 defenders within about 4 feet of the player with the ball now. The player with the ball is now about 5-6 feet behind the 3 point line. You have to be able to show how his actions with about 3 seconds would differ than those with the 5.6 he allegedly saw up when he got the pass back.

They need to look toward using a backup clock -- one that is at the table and can be fed into the video for replay.

The clock freezing is a bit of a pain. I had a football playoff game the year before last where we had to reset the game clock like 6 times in the last 3 minutes of the game. It just kept stopping through no fault of the clock operators.

I know we often have our own personal counts when possessions begin with just a handful of seconds left, to combat against the clock not starting properly. This is usually coming out of a timeout, but otherwise on an inbounds play.

I forget when this possession began, but I feel like it was with more than 10 seconds remaining. Does anyone ever do a personal count of this length? Even so, once you determine the clock has started properly, do you usually just bag your count? I know I do.

Might not anymore though ...

I count to myself always when the clock is under 30 seconds. I adjust my "internal clock" whenever I can see the game clock.