Those referees won’t be hurting anybody else, at least not in this Big East tournament.
The three officials who stopped officiating in the final seconds of the St. John’s-Rutgers second-round game Wednesday and missed or ignored Justin Brownlee traveling and stepping out of bounds will not be calling any more games at the Garden this week.
“In the best interest of everyone involved — including coaches, student-athletes, game officials and Big East member institutions — the officials who were assigned to the St. John’s-Rutgers game Wednesday have voluntarily withdrawn for the remainder of the 2011 Big East Championship,” Big East commissioner John Marinatto said in a statement.
The officials — Jim Burr, Tim Higgins and Earl Walton — volunteered a day too late for Rutgers, its season ended in part due to their incompetence.
With 5 seconds left Wednesday, Rutgers inbounded the ball trailing 65-63 with a pass to midcourt that was deflected then recovered by Brownlee, who started running with the ball on his way to the sideline. Replays clearly showed him travel and step out of bounds with 1.7 seconds left. But the referees let the final horn sound as Brownlee threw the ball into the crowd, which could have been a technical foul if he was ruled out of bounds.
“I’m appreciative to the refs for holding themselves accounatble,” Rutgers coach Mike Rice saiod Thursday. “That guys of that caliber would do something like that, you don’t see a lot of that.”
The controversy has become the talk of the 16-team tournament. The conference is hopeful that the referees stepping away will put the focus back on the games.
“With three days of competition remaining, it is our hope that everyone will now focus on our outstanding teams and the exciting games ahead,” Marinatto said.
The officiating was called “unacceptable” by NCAA officiating coordinator John Adams after Wednesday’s result. Rutgers coach Mike Rice took the high road, calling Big East officials “the best in the country” after the game.
“Our officials are very dedicated and loyal group of professionals who care deeply about the Big East Conference,” Marinatto said.
With Lenn Robbins
