The Internet exploded Sunday night into Monday morning with frustration over the ending of the Toronto Raptors’ game against the Sacramento Kings.
The Raptors believed Terrence Ross had hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to send the game to overtime, but due to NBA rules, the shot was reviewed. Upon review, officials called the shot no good, saying that Kings center Demarcus Cousins had tipped the ball on its way inbounds, which should have made the clock start a few tenths of a second earlier and therefore would have made Ross’ shot too late.
The call resulted in a 102-99 loss for Toronto.
While watching the replay closely, you actually can see the clock start a few moments before Ross actually touches it. It’s unclear if this was a response to Cousins tipping the ball, or if it was an error by the clock operator, but since officials weren’t sure Cousins had tipped the ball before the review, it appears the latter is the case.
Still, people were pretty upset about the result and many took to Twitter to lament their thoughts that the Raptors had been “screwed.”
It’s hard to argue against the call the referees made, considering Cousins clearly touches the ball. But it’s much easier to do so when there’s an angry mob of Canadians hounding you about it.
Consider us happy this wasn’t our decision to make.
Thumbnail photo via Neville E. Guard/USA TODAY Sports Images
