NBA: Refs made wrong call on late foul that gave Pacers tie-breaking free throws vs. Celtics
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The NBA office said Tuesday the referees in Monday night’s Boston-Indiana game made the wrong call on a foul with 0.6 seconds to go, resulting in the decisive free throws that gave Indiana a 133-131 win.
In Tuesday’s Last Two Minute Report, league officials said Celtics forward Kristaps Porzingis only made “incidental arm contact occurring concurrent with the block” on Bennedict Mathurin’s final shot.
The referees correctly conducted a replay review to determine if the contact occurred before the buzzer sounded and whether time should be added to the clock, which it was. But the report said the play was not reviewable under the replay trigger and Boston was out of challenges.
Mathurin made the tie-breaking free throws to beat the Eastern Conference’s top team and square the teams’ season series at 2-2.