Tonight wasn’t a great night for the Big East officiating crew working this evening’s top-25 matchup between Villanova No. 8 and No. 21 UConn.
Starting with a questionable ejection for Huskies head coach Dan Hurley and finishing with a game-sealing charge call, this group of referees has taken a great deal of heat on social media tonight.
Down one with just over five seconds remaining on the clock, Villanova had one final chance to score a game-winning bucket. Receiving the inbounds pass on the other side of the court, Wildcats guard Collin Gillespe took it coast to coast on a straight-line drive to the basket.
UConn guard R.J. Cole stepped up at the last second to obstruct Gillespe’s path to the basket, ultimately leading to a charge call that sealed a 71-69 win for the Huskies.
This was ruled a charge.
Right or wrong call? 🤔https://t.co/6b9k8CbXOu
— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) February 23, 2022
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Quite a few college basketball fans weren’t too happy with this call.
“Absolutely horrendous call to end the game. UConn v Villanova. Absolutely terrible call. Not a charge,” one fan wrote.
“This ref obviously had UConn ML. What a [clown] call,” another said.
“First Gillespie fouled and they call jump ball to give UConn the ball back. Then Gillespie fouled and they call that charge at the end of the game. Villanova absolutely robbed,” another added.
Trailing by four with less than 30 second remaining, UConn hit a three to draw the Wildcats’ lead within one. On the very next play, the Huskies forced a jump ball and got the ball back for a go-ahead layup.
With this win, UConn improves to 20-7 on the season. Villanova now drops to 21-7 and will likely lose its spot in the top-10.
What do you say: Block or Charge?