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MANILA, Philippines – The referee who missed a crucial 24-second shot clock violation during the dying seconds of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals game between Rain or Shine and Ginebra has been suspended for the rest of the conference, the PBA announced Sunday.
In a statement, the PBA acknowledged that the referee on the ball should have called a 24-second shot-clock violation on Ginebra ahead of a steal and game-winning lay-up made by ROS’ Jeff Chan.
Chan had poked the ball away from Ginebra import Michael Dunigan and went all the way to the other end for the go-ahead lay-up with 4.9 seconds to go, putting ROS up 92-91.
Replays and screen grabs later showed that the shot clock had expired before Chan fully got control of the ball, but the referees let action continue, allowing Chan to make the game-winning play.
Ginebra actually still had a chance to win, but Jayjay Helterbrand was way off on a potential game-winner.
“Despite the absence of a formal protest, the Office of the Commissioner reviewed the steal made by Chan on Dunigan in the 8.7 mark of the fourth quarter with the 24-second shot clock winding down,” the PBA said in a statement.
“A closer look at the play shows that Chan tapped the ball from Dunigan with 0.2 second left on the shot-clock,” it added.
Tapping the ball away from Dunigan “did not constitute a loss of possession” on Ginebra’s part and thus the shot clock did not stop from counting down, the Commissioner’s Office explained in its statement.
“For the 24-second shot clock to cease from counting down, clear and immediate control of the ball must be had by the defensive team,” it said. “A closer look at the slow motion replay reveals that Jeff Chan did not have clear and immediate control of the ball after the tap, at which time a 24-second violation should have been called by the referees.”
“Jeff Chan only had clear and immediate control of the ball with his second dribble, after the 24-second shot clock had already expired,” the PBA said.
“The referee on the ball missed that play, and is thus suspended by this Office for the rest of the conference.”
The PBA acknowledged that the incident “demonstrates the difficulty in making judgment calls in real time and did not involve an error in technicality that is a ground for protest.”
Nevertheless, the Commissioner’s Office decided to impose a disciplinary measure on the game official for what it called a “lapse in judgment which involved a call that was not reviewable and correctible under the rules during the game.”
The loss eliminated Ginebra from the PBA Commissioner’s Cup playoffs and allowed Rain or Shine to advance to the semi-finals.
Photo: Nuki Sabio/PBA Images
This story was republished with permission from ABS-CBNnews.com.
