MANASQUAN, N.J. (PIX11) -- It happened in New Jersey, but it's being talked about nationwide and even beyond.
A buzzer-beater at a high school state playoff game was just that -- a shot to the basket that made it into the hoop just before the final buzzer. Many videos of the moment confirm it, and the referee overseeing the play declared it good. But a moment later, all three referees conferred and overturned the first referee's decision, awarding the win that had belonged to Cinderella team Manasquan to their much more seasoned rival. It sparked a firestorm of reaction at the game, which spread far and wide across the internet and other media.
People responded to the details of the game -- how Manasquan High School's boys varsity, down one point, shot a three-pointer with seconds remaining. The shot bounced off the rim and another player got the rebound and got it into the hoop a split second before the buzzer went off. It was a one-point win, that people who'd been at the Tuesday evening game were talking about widely on Wednesday.
"They were supposedly huge underdogs in that match," said Brendan O'Donnell, the father of a freshman boys' team player, "[but] came out on top, and had it taken away on a bad call," he said outside of Manasquan High School on Wednesday afternoon. "It's just disappointing for everyone involved."
James Michko, a senior at the school who's friends with most of the basketball players, was at the game cheering on his friends. "It was clear the shot went in," he said, "and then, the buzzer went off. You could see some the refs said, 'Count it.'"
Still, after a conference among all three referees, they concluded that the ball had not left the player's hands before the buzzer. Their decision to overturn the ruling left the other team, basketball powerhouse Camden, the winner.
Bubba O'Donnell is on the freshman basketball team and said that the game had shown the tenacity and skill of the Manasquan players.
"We work our [expletive] off," he said, "and we deserved that win, and they didn't. I'm sure they're good, but we're better."
Like so many other people at the school who'd seen the game in person, as well as thousands more who watched the video afterward, it was clear that the referees' decision contradicts what the video shows.
Even former Rutgers University basketball coach Mike Rice said on X, "Manasquan got robbed." His message also had an inset of the game clock, which showed that the shot happened before the buzzer.
College coaches like Rice, though, have a privilege that high school athletics officials do not. That privilege was pointed out in a statement by the organization that oversees high school athletics in New Jersey, and which is ultimately responsible for the outcome of the game.
The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, or NJSIAA, issued a statement on Wednesday that read, in part, "Unlike in college or the pros, there is no instant replay review in high school basketball in New Jersey. These are the rules of the game that all schools agree to follow, and which have been upheld on appeal. We apologize to the Manasquan team for the error.”
Because the NJSIAA admitted an error, Manasquan School District's superintendent, Frank Kasyan, said that he will appeal the referee's decision to the state entity to which the NJSIAA has to answer -- Commissioner of Education Kevin Dehmer.
Commissioner Dehmer has to make a decision in short order about the outcome of the game. It had been a semifinal for the state championship in Manasquan's division. The championship game is on Saturday.
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