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This referee did not have have his “One Shining Moment.”
The first controversial call of March Madness happened Wednesday night when a questionable shooting foul against Wagner with two seconds remaining in a tie game ultimately booted the defending NEC champions from the tournament.
The 50-50 foul put third-seeded St. Francis (PA) at the free-throw line for what proved to be the game-winning free throws in its 58-55 win in the quarterfinals.
“I was pretty certain that this game was going to be hard fought, it was going to be competitive all the way down to the very last possession,” St. Francis coach Rob Krimmel said after his team’s fourth straight win to improve to 14-17.
Very questionable call against Wagner in a tie game on this three-point hoist from Saint Francis’s Riley Parker.Parker went to the line and made all three free throws. Brutal way for Wagner’s chance for repeating as NECT Champs to vanish.FINAL- Saint Francis 58, Wagner 55. pic.twitter.com/NxoIR3da6Y— Rocco Miller (@RoccoMiller8) March 6, 2025
Wednesday’s matchup featured a spirited 12-point second-half rally by sixth-seeded Wagner, with Javier Ezquerra tying the game at 55-55 on a layup with 12 seconds remaining.
The Seahawks had trailed, 47-35, with less than seven minutes remaining.
St. Francis’ Riley Parker then dribbled up the court and drove toward the left arc of 3-point line before pulling up with roughly 4.7 seconds remaining.
Wagner’s Zavier Fitch contested Parker’s shot, which proved to be an air ball.
Even one of the announcers said “overtime,” believing regulation had ended.
But the referee standing near them blew his whistle and Fitch could not believe the call, demonstrably reacting to the whistle.
Parker hit all three free throws before a Hail Mary shot by the Seahawks fell short.
“Just make the right play. I work on those shots every single day, multiple times a day, and then my team puts me in the right position, as well as the coaches,” Parker, who tied the game-high with 16 points, said of having the ball at the end of games.
St. Francis will now face second-seeded LIU on Saturday in the semifinals.
