Sports leagues have instituted replay reviews to help officials make the right decision, but those reviews are usually handled by the referees themselves. In a men’s basketball game between Virginia and Florida in Charlotte on Friday night, though, the officials used a different source to help make the right call.
With under a minute left in the game and the Cavaliers leading by two points, officials had to determine which team touched the ball last in an out-of-bounds play. After initially awarding possession of the ball to Virginia, the refs then used a monitor provided by the ESPN broadcast team to revise that decision.
“We’ve got a much better view on this one,” ESPN analyst Cory Alexander said on the air.
After the referees discussed the play, they reversed the call and gave Florida possession at a key point of the game. Virginia coach Tony Bennett was furious with the ESPN crew for helping the officials make the decision.
“Tony Bennett is now yelling at me from across the court for allowing the officials to know when the basketball goes out is the right play on the floor,” Alexander said on the air. “I’ll take that one. That’s on me.”
Tony Bennett was furious with ESPN's Cory Alexander for letting the refs check his monitor to overturn a call against Virginia. pic.twitter.com/0ZowSsL8Ir
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 11, 2023
If the situation wasn’t awkward enough, consider that Alexander is a Virginia alum who played four seasons for the Cavaliers from 1991-95. However, as a broadcaster, Alexander made sure the call was fair instead of giving the Cavaliers an edge.
Virginia ultimately won the game, 73-70, improving to 2-0 on the year.
