Hawks and Heat will play again. For 51.9 seconds after NBA upheld Miami's protes

[GangstaBoogy]

ATLANTA (AP) -- The Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat must replay the final 51.9 seconds of their game last month because the NBA said the official scorer ruled incorrectly that Shaquille O'Neal fouled out. This will be the first time since 1982 the league has sent teams back on the court for a replay.

The Hawks won 117-111 at home in overtime Dec. 19. The NBA said Friday the replay will be held before the teams' next scheduled game -- March 8 in Atlanta. Play will start from the time after O'Neal's disputed sixth foul.

The Hawks also were fined $50,000, with commissioner David Stern ruling the team was "grossly negligent" in failing to address the mistake.

The protest is the first granted by the NBA since December 1982, when then-NBA commissioner Larry O'Brien upheld a request for a replay by the San Antonio Spurs after their 137-132 double-overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers the previous month.

The Spurs and Lakers finished the game in April 1983, with San Antonio winning 117-114.

The Hawks were leading 112-111 in overtime when O'Neal was called for a foul. The scoring table personnel, who are provided by the home team, ruled it was the Miami center's sixth foul, when actually it was only his fifth.

According to the league, the mistake stemmed from a foul with 3:24 remaining in the fourth quarter that was called on Udonis Haslem but was mistakenly credited to O'Neal at the scoring table.

Stern ruled the Hawks "failed to follow league-mandated scoring procedures and failed to respond effectively when the members of the statisticians' crew noticed the mistake," the NBA said in a statement.

The NBA requires the official scorer to coordinate foul calls with the stat crew during every timeout. That apparently didn't happen in this case, resulting in the mistake going unnoticed until after the game, when the Hawks put out revised boxes showing O'Neal with six fouls.

This isn't the first statistical problem to occur in Atlanta. On Nov. 24, 2006, the official scorer failed to credit Toronto's T.J. Ford with a basket that would have given the Raptors a late tie and an opportunity to change the outcome of a 97-93 loss.

"Because of this conduct by Atlanta's personnel, Miami suffered a clear competitive disadvantage, as O'Neal -- the Heat's second-leading scorer and rebounder that night -- was removed from a one-point game with only 51.9 seconds remaining," the NBA statement said.

Al Horford hit two free throws after O'Neal's foul to give the Hawks a 114-111 lead. Anthony Johnson added a running jumper with 14 seconds left to put the game away.

Now, they'll have to do it over again.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AqkpQ6y0XoPstxRe_LGCQrm8vLYF?slug=ap-heat-hawksreplay&prov=ap&type=lgns


Wow I've never seen this happen before. How about doing the 06 Finals over?

[Styles1]

The league correcting it's own officials? Let me check outside to see if there are any cows flying....

[Lunatic]

this is gay

[Antonio_]

The league correcting it's own officials?

The official scorer ain't a real NBA official. He's a guy from Atlanta, selected by the Hawks, who do that job for the Hawks. He's more like an Hawk official.
This is why they fined the Hawks $ 50,000.

Back in topic, i think this is a pretty good decision. I mean it's strange and shit, but it was a tecnical mistake, if they can somehow repair it why not?

[Hatesrats™]

The league correcting it's own officials? Let me check outside to see if there are any cows flying....

LOL, I Think I seen a couple of Pig's tho homie..
except they was rollin' in a Ford Crown Victoria

[Styles1]

The league correcting it's own officials?

The official scorer ain't a real NBA official. He's a guy from Atlanta, selected by the Hawks, who do that job for the Hawks. He's more like an Hawk official.
This is why they fined the Hawks $ 50,000.

Back in topic, i think this is a pretty good decision. I mean it's strange and shit, but it was a tecnical mistake, if they can somehow repair it why not?

Well, that makes more sense. I admit to skimming the article.

LOL @  Hatesrats..... 

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

LMAO...like it really makes a difference.

[OG Hack Wilson]

itd be funny if the heat got like 3 quick three pointers

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

NBA Sets Guidelines for Heat-Hawks Replay

By PAUL NEWBERRY, AP Sports Writer
Posted Mar 4 2008 12:00PM

ATLANTA (AP) -- Shaquille O'Neal is no longer around, but Mike Bibby and Shawn Marion will be able to suit up for the NBA's first replay since 1982.

The league set guidelines for Saturday's do-over between the Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat, who must complete the final 51.9 seconds of their Dec. 19 overtime game.

The Hawks left the court that night with a 117-111 victory, but commissioner David Stern struck it from the books after the home team's stat crew mistakenly ruled that O'Neal, then playing for Miami, had fouled out with less than a minute to go in overtime.

O'Neal has since been traded to Phoenix, but the NBA said Monday that both teams can fill out any openings on their 12-man active roster with players acquired since the disputed game.

That means the Heat can dress Marion and Marcus Banks, who came from the Suns in the Shaq deal. Likewise, the Hawks will be able to use Bibby, who was picked up from Sacramento just ahead of the trade deadline.

Miami has 10 players who were active Dec. 19 still on its roster, leaving two openings for the makeup minute. The Heat's other options are Jason Williams, Smush Parker and Joel Anthony.

The Hawks, who gave up four players for Bibby, have nine active players still around from the disputed game. Also eligible to be added for the replay are Josh Childress, Jeremy Richardson and Speedy Claxton.

Miami will have the ball when the game resumes, trailing 114-111. After the replay is completed, the teams will get a 15-minute break, then return to the court for their regularly scheduled contest at Philips Arena.

The night is vitally important to the Hawks, who are battling for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and can hardly afford to squander an apparent win against hapless Miami, which has the NBA's worst record (11-46).

Stern also fined the Hawks $50,000, ruling they were "grossly negligent'' in failing to address the mistake.

Miami's protest was the first granted by the NBA since December 1982, when then-NBA commissioner Larry O'Brien upheld a request for a replay by the San Antonio Spurs after their 137-132 double-overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers the previous month.

The Spurs and Lakers finally finished the game in April 1983, with San Antonio winning 117-114.

[Bay Area Jat]

i wonder if fans are going to be able to attend this 51.9 second game

[Lunatic]

so that 'win' has already been taken off the hawks total, correct? so if we hang out for those 51.9 secs and win the regular game, we get 2 wins?

[Now_Im_Not_Banned]

i wonder if fans are going to be able to attend this 51.9 second game

It's gunna take place before the next game between both teams.

so that 'win' has already been taken off the hawks total, correct? so if we hang out for those 51.9 secs and win the regular game, we get 2 wins?

Exactly.

[Lunatic]

^sick..that should be 2 much needed wins

[the.SET]

fucked up if we loose both :/

[Mo Z. Dizzle]

Atlanta won the replay 114-111.