Basketball games can’t be overturned in court.
Following the controversial finish to the New Jersey high school basketball semifinal that cost Manasquan a win against Camden, Judge Mark Troncone denied Thursday a filing by the Manasquan Board of Education to postpone Saturday’s scheduled Group 2 championship game.
Camden school district’s attorney, Lou Cappelli Jr., then proceeded to rub it even further by blasting Manasquan for making a legal matter of a wrong — and season-ending — call by the referees.
“Are we going to go back and look at all 32 minutes of the game and come to the judge and say, ‘Judge, this wasn’t a foul’? It’s ridiculous,” Cappelli said, according to The Asbury Park Press.
“There are rules and regulations. You have to learn to live with the decisions of the referee. That’s all part of sports. Coming to a court to address a referee’s call is outrageous. It’s a waste of the taxpayers’ money and a waste of the court’s time, as well.”
The finish to Tuesday’s semifinal matchup has become a national story as Manasquan was clearly robbed of a victory after the referees waved off the game-wining basket.
Manasquan’s Griffin Linstra scored at the buzzer to seemingly give Manasquan a 47-46 upset victory, resulting in an on-court celebration with fans.
The referees, though, changed their call, saying Linstra did not beat the buzzer, giving Camden a stunning 46-45 win.
The referees did not get it right, with videos showing the ball clearly leaving Linstra’s hands before the clock hit zero.
The NJSIAA admitted Wednesday that the referees made a mistake and Manasquan should have won the game and advanced, but it would not change the outcome.
That led to Manasquan taking the matter to court.
Manasquan Superintendent Dr. Frank Kaysan appeared to take issue with Cappelli’s statements.
“It’s all about a learning situation, a learning environment for the students. It’s not a waste of time. That’s the difference between Camden and Manasquan,” said Kaysan, according the Asbury Park Press.
“We want to teach the students at Manasquan that there is a process and procedure when you are on the right side of something to obtain equity, and what we did here is use the process and the procedure the State of New Jersey put into effect. Everyone knows we won the game, but we want to do so using the avenue the state has given us to do it properly.”
There is still has a glimmer of hope for Manasquan, even if it’s faint at this point, with an appeal petition having been filed to Department of Education and Acting Commissioner Kevin Dehmer.
Manasquan school district attorney Michael Gross told the paper he hopes a decision will be made Friday, providing an appellate court time the necessary time to decide before Saturday’s championship game.
Camden is scheduled to face Arts in the title contest.
