NCAA tournament discussion thread

[shoxlax]

More importantly Ben how did any of this affect our game if true?

[WillieJeffJeffries]

We lost, there was nothing out of line with the officials. Every game has calls that can go either way. Kentuck got a few calls in the last 5 minutes but bottom line they made one more play than WSU did. WSU left 6-10 points out there over the last 5-7 minutes....that is what swung the game to UK

[shoxlax]

Not to veer off course but when I hear of officials on the take I think of point spreads not true wins/losses. The spread was 5.

Of course this whole conversation is silly until proven otherwise.

[Ben Button]

Do you have any evidence that this actually happened? The only part of this that can be confirmed by anyone who wasn't there is that Gaffney officiated the game Sunday, other than that you need to show some sort of evidence to make it seem believable.

Did you hear the voicemail? Were you also under the influence and is there potential that you aren't remembering the night correctly? Have you talked to anyone else there who can corroborate this story? Were there any media members present who could've overheard this? Do you even have a picture of the officials at the bar that could show you were even in the same place as them that night?

Sorry if it seems like everybody is writing you off immediately, but this story just seems extremely fishy and without any evidence its legitimacy pretty much has to be rejected by anyone who wasn't there

I was there until 8:30 with five other people. We left at 8:30 to go to dinner. Another of our party was not able to leave because he and his wife brought his children. He arrived at a little before 11:00pm. He heard the cell phone calls.
There was a camera entering and leaving the bar.The officials were staying at the Omni Hotel where the bar is located. I never said it effected the game. I said it should not be going on!
I have the names and phone numbers of all witnesses. Our party was staying at the same Hotel.
If you do not believe me check with the Omni Hotel. All the officials were staying there.
The question is: should this be going on? Not whether it effected our game.

[shoxlax]

How do you know the call was determined to be a prank?

[shoxlax]

Let's hear from some of the other witnesses. Of course it could be you posting from five different accounts so I will have to take it at face value.

[Ben Button]

How do you know the call was determined to be a prank?

That is what was repeated by the official at the bar in his telephone conversation.

[Ben Button]

Let's hear from some of the other witnesses. Of course it could be you posting from five different accounts so I will have to take it at face value.

If you do not believe it, call the Omni Hotel. The officials were staying at Omni Hotel. They were in the bar drinking with fans the night before they officiated the KU game and the WSU game.

[Cuttyhunk]

Ugh. Hey question for you Louisville guys: when Pitino got to Louisville, what was the fan base's reaction to him since he was at Kentucky beforehand?

Denny Crum had been kind of drifting at that time. Recruiting was down. Denny didn't embrace the three. Like typical fan bases, many of us despised Pitino when he was at UK. But, the up-tempo. The shot at getting some top recruits. Rick gave us a new hope to be relevant again. Made Jurich a genius.

[Shockeriffic]

If you do not believe it, call the Omni Hotel. The officials were staying at Omni Hotel. They were in the bar drinking with fans the night before they officiated the KU game and the WSU game.

I don't believe it and I have more proof than you do. Gaffney is a Big East referee and since 2003 he has called a combined ZERO games for Kentucky and Memphis. There's no way a referee with absolutely no history with a coach would ever believe some phony voicemail accusing him of being on the take. Now go away and stop making our fan base look bad.

http://statsheet.com/mcb/referees/john-gaffney/teams

[shoxlax]

I don't believe it and I have more proof than you do. Gaffney is a Big East referee and since 2003 he has called a combined ZERO games for Kentucky and Memphis. There's no way a referee with absolutely no history with a coach would ever believe some phony voicemail accusing him of being on the take. Now go away and stop making our fan base look bad.

http://statsheet.com/mcb/referees/john-gaffney/teams

Ouch! Game set match

[Rosewood]

[Shocker Mama]

This is true:
The officials for the Sunday games in St. Louis were staying at The Omni Hotel at 1019 Pine. On Saturday night most of the officials came to the hotel bar. ...
Concerns:
Why was an official required to officiate a game in which he felt compromised?
Why were officials drinking the night before the game (where fans were present)?
Were the coaches of the teams involved told?
How can someone get access to an official to make such a call?
How was it determined the call was a prank?
Was there an appearance of impropriety?

I think the "bottle to throttle" rule for airline pilots (people to whom others' lives are entrusted) is eight hours. I don't know, but I'd be surprised if the NCAA has a rule that a referee who's calling a 1:45 p.m. game is prohibited from consuming alcohol some fourteen hours before the game.

[jocoshock]

Undefeated Wichita State would have been the more palatable matchup, even after the Shockers pushed Louisville to the brink last year in the Final Four. There is far less psychological baggage associated with playing them, far less emotional risk, and far fewer NBA draft picks to face.

@YahooForde: Column: Fear and Loathing in Louisville: Why Cardinals fans are dreading the game against Kentucky Friday http://yhoo.it/1iy5XNC

[Anthroshock]

Undefeated Wichita State would have been the more palatable matchup, even after the Shockers pushed Louisville to the brink last year in the Final Four. There is far less psychological baggage associated with playing them, far less emotional risk, and far fewer NBA draft picks to face.

@YahooForde: Column: Fear and Loathing in Louisville: Why Cardinals fans are dreading the game against Kentucky Friday http://yhoo.it/1iy5XNC

We're all very sensitive about our perception in the media, but I noticed a lot of immature and backhanded complimenting in Forde's write ups on the Shocks. I guess I should just give up on being surprised.