The Pacers left Madison Square Garden with defeat and regret. Because the match was very close and the last minute was long, very long, with mistakes and interventions from the referees. Twice, at important moments, the coin fell on the Knicks' side.
The first is 52 seconds from time. Aaron Nesmith steals the ball, but the officials whistle “foot”. This changes everything since it gives possession back to the Knicks, who will score at 3-points, while the Indiana player had indeed intercepted the ball with his hand.
“I touched the ball with my hand, not my foot. You could clearly see it”, he reacted while the referees will agree with him… after the match. “This is clearly visible in slow motion”, repeats Myles Turner. This situation is not part of the actions that can be verified on video, making it impossible for the Pacers to recover this ball despite having won it defensively.
Forty seconds later, second situation: Myles Turner sets a screen for Tyrese Haliburton and Donte DiVincenzo takes the blow and falls. The referees call an offensive foul. The contact is real and the Knicks shooter adds a little. Even after reviewing the images, the decision is confirmed. “They reviewed and confirmed the illegal screen. I think DiVincenzo really exaggerated it.”laments the Pacers pivot.
“The best thing is to let the players decide the outcome of the match”
“I don’t want to talk about refereeing,” adds Rick Carlisle. “We didn’t expect to get any whistles here. It would have been nice to leave this one, but they didn't. It's like that. They rewatched the footage, and there are people in New Jersey (in the idle center) who agreed with them. That's how it happens. »
Myles Turner regrets the intervention of the officials on this style of action, at this moment of the game. “From my experience, I find that the best thing is to let the players decide the outcome of the match. What happened is unfortunate,” he insists before tempering his words. “Most of the time you can't put yourself in a position to let the match be decided by the referees. We must assume our responsibilities. We're after the match, there's still emotion, but we can't let things get to that point. »
Same speech from TJ McConnell, who asks the Pacers to make the decision themselves. “We cannot dwell on the arbitration. They are just trying to do their job. There are many actions that we could have done and these are things that we can then control”concludes the playmaker.
