A controversial foul call nearly ruined Rutgers’ first Big Ten win of the season, forcing the Scarlet Knights to defeat the Ducks, 88-85, in overtime.
Rutgers was leading by three with less than 20 seconds left in the game when freshman guard Lino Mark grabbed his own rebound off a free throw, but Mark, in the midst of a career night, was called for a questionable foul that kept the Ducks alive.
Oregon was able to move the ball quickly up the court, and after missing their first attempt at a game-tying 3-pointer, guard Wei Lin knocked down the game-tying shot with 4.6 seconds left that forced overtime.
Fans inside Jersey Mike’s Arena let the refs hear it after the regulation buzzer sounded.
Even Peacock broadcaster John Fanta couldn’t believe what had happened.
“What is this… Are they calling a foul?” a shocked Fanta asked on air. “They are calling a foul on Lino Mark. … Oh my goodness.”
After the broadcast showed a replay of what had happened, Fanta again expressed his shock.
“Oh my goodness, that is not a foul,” he said. “That is insanity.”
Rutgers managed to salvage the win by outscoring the Ducks 12-9 in the extra period.
Scarlet Knights head coach Steve Pikiell didn’t have much of a reaction to the situation, telling reporters that he was “on to the next thing.”
“I’ll watch it on film and stuff. You can’t review it, you can’t change it, so,” he said. “I thought Lino did a fantastic job with those plays, and I actually thought when they blew the whistle, it was on the other team. But we fought through that too, so great job by our guys staying on what was important.”
Mark finished the game with 13 points in the win, with Tariq Francis leading the Scarlet Knights in scoring with 30.
Rutgers is currently 8-7 this season with a 1-3 record in the Big Ten.
