Greg Oden's "Unintentional Foul"
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by user Sbrokos
The only coverage I've heard of Ohio State's comeback win over Xavier in round 2 of the NCAA tournament was that Greg Oden's foul near the end of regulation should have been called intentional and sealed the game for Xavier. This idea is absurd.
First of all no one seems to mention how Oden was fouled while trying to make that rebound. Apparently holding a player's arms back while the ball is up for grabs is ok now. However, the referees did their jobs and swallowed their whistles at the end of the game in order to let the plaers decide the outcome. Exactly what they should have done.
However, the most disturbing thing about the media's reaction to the play is their hypocrisy. Typically, the general consensus is that the players should decide the end of games, not the officials. Well isn't that exactly what happened? Oden had to foul Cage in order for the clock to stop and to bank their entire season on a missed free throw and a clutch three pointer to tie. He bumps into the guy to ensure a foul, Cage leaps out of bounds and that should be the deciding play of the game? If the ref calls and intentional foul and claims Xavier the winner after that play we never would have seen Cage miss the 2nd free throw and never would have seen Ron Lewis' incredible 3 pointer to tie the game and send it overtime where it was decided exactly where it should have been, by the players on the court. Whether or not a foul should be deemed intentional is a judgement call. In this particular instance, that's like eliminating the score of a game and having a judge decide at the end who won.
Why are sports analysts calling for this? Is it because they need something to fill all of the time they've alloted for Around the Horn, Pardon the Interruption and Sportscenter; 2 straight hours of people taking about the exact same stories? I understand it must be hard to pick sports stories to talk about in order to fill a day, but it seems like stories are being created rather than reported. Ohio State-Xavier was a phenomenal game. Xavier played an incredible game and almost had the Buckeyes dead and buried. Ohio State's ensuing comeback and clutch shooting made for one of, if not the best game of the 1st 2 rounds. Why not talk about the game rather than an appropriate "non-call"? If refs are deciding the outcomes of games, fans will lose interest quick. Then what will all these talking-heads do for a living? Be careful what you wish for.
