» NBA Basketball » Wizards Defeat Golden State, 107-106 On Controversial Foul Call
Wizards Defeat Golden State, 107-106 On Controversial Foul Call
Story by: Richard thomas
Posted March 04, 2007
Photos by: Sol tucker
Washington, DC--
Call it weird , call it strange, or call it one of the worst calls in NBA history, but one final foul call helped the Wizards edge the Golden State Warriors by one point, 107-106.
As the buzzer sounded, official Tony Brothers blew his whistle and called a foul on Mickeal Pietrus, awarding Gilbert Arenas two free throw attempts. Golden State Coach Don Nelson came onto the court and yelled, "Tony, you are a [expletive] idiot." Derrick Stafford then stepped in and hit Nelson with a technical foul.
"For being out on the floor?" Nelson said. "Eddie [Jordan] was out on the floor. If they gave me one they should have given him one. I was out on the floor. We were both out on the floor. I was standing next to him for a minute."
What can Nelson say other than that the video review did not show a foul and he was upset with the finish that the Warriors put on at the end, which was much different than the start of the game when the Warriors held as much as a15 point lead and could not miss a shot from the field during the first quarter.
The Warriors were led by Jason Richardson with 28 points and 10 rebounds and Al Harrington scored 25 points and had 13 rebounds. Harrington who was in the middle of the mess at the end of the game gave his thoughts about the wild ending.
"It's just unfortunate that the refs made a very, very, very bad call," Al Harrington said. "I don't know if I'm going to get fined for that, but that was just an awful call. Pretty much I really don't mind the (personal) foul, because if it's a foul and he makes two free throws, we're playing an extra five minutes. But the technical was just ridiculous because now you just take the game completely away from us."
Wizards Notes:
Wizards center Etan Thomas started for Washington in place of Brendan Haywood (back). It was Thomas' 21st start of the season, a career high, and first since Dec. 9 against Houston. Baron Davis practiced with the Warriors on Saturday but did not play against Washington. He has missed 13 straight games due to a left knee injury, but he could be activated for Monday's game against Detroit.
Who Cried Foul? Officials Did Sending Gilbert Arenas to the Free Throw Line for Three Shots Including a Technical Foul Shot Which Arenas Hit Sealing the Deal