Why a timeout called in OT hurt Fresno State’s chances in Mountain West championship

The Fresno State women’s basketball team is going home without a trophy from the Mountain West Tournament.

A timeout called at the end of overtime has a lot to do with it.

The Bulldogs, the No. 1 seed at the tournament, were felled 80-76 by Boise State in the conference championship game Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Bulldogs junior guard Aly Gamez appeared to flip in a shot off an intentionally missed free throw that would’ve tied the score with 0.9 seconds remaining and likely sent the game into double overtime.

Except an official ruled that the Bulldogs called a timeout before the shot. The Bulldogs did not have any timeouts remaining and instead were called for a technical foul, which waived off Gamez’s bucket and essentially cemented the game for the Broncos.

“I’m not sure (who called timeout),” Bulldogs coach Jaime White said. “It’s still a little bit of a blur to me.”

White said the staff had made it clear to the players during Fresno State’s final timeout that they had no more timeouts remaining.

“Timeout, timeout,” can be heard on the video of the play.

It is unclear, however, where it was coming from and who was requesting one.

“We told them in the huddle,” White said of the Bulldogs’ lack of timeouts. “But, you know, the game is tight and I think we made a great play at the end.

‘I guess you saw it’

“We made the first one, we missed the second one, we got the rebound. We did everything we could do in our power. And then … I guess you saw it, it was on national TV, wasn’t it?”

The officials – Lisa Jones, Brenda Pantoja and Melissa Barlow – met in front of the Bulldogs bench to sort through the call and made their ruling.

“They talked about an audible and that if the official hears it then they have to call it, I think, because I don’t know the rule so much,” White said.

“But Lisa did a good job of trying to explain to me as best she could. I still don’t necessarily understand it. It’s kind of hard when there are a lot of emotions going on.”

Boise State coach Gordy Presnell said the explanation he got was the official definitely heard a timeout call.

“The official said that she positively heard and saw the timeout, and (Fresno State) didn’t have any,” he said. “She was 100% sure. When they say 100% sure, then they’re 100% sure.

“And so, we were able to get a chance to get the free throw and get the ball back.”

‘It wasn’t in our control’

Fresno State players and coaches were emotionally charged at the end of the game, all while realizing their chances of securing an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament had slipped away.

“I just think that we did everything right, like Coach White was saying,” said guard Haley Cavinder, who along with twin sister Hanna Cavinder and Gamez each scored 17 points. “We missed the free throw that we needed to get the tip back in. But at that point it wasn’t in our control.

“That’s what’s hard about it. That play kind of decided the game and the emotions were high. Clearly, we wanted to win it.”

“I agree with Haley,” said junior Maddi Utti, who scored 16 points with seven rebounds and three assists and with Haley Cavinder was selected to the all-tournament team. “When the shot went in, we were all on a high. We thought we tied the game again. And so when it was waived off, it was a little bit disappointing.”

After the game, Jones, the referee, explained the call.

“After making sure Fresno State recovered the ball without going out of bounds, I acknowledged the audible timeout that was requested by a player on the court,” the referee said. “Fresno State was out of timeouts. So the excessive timeout came into play. When excessive timeout is assessed, it is the only administrative rule where the team loses possessions after two free throws by the opposing team.”

Boise State’s Riley Lupfer made one of those foul shots, putting the Broncos back up by three and on their way to a record fourth consecutive Mountain West Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance.

The Bulldogs are unlikely to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA, but will land the conference’s automatic bid into the Women’s NIT.

Fresno State rally

Fresno State (25-7) was in deep before that last jam-packed second of basketball in the overtime. It was down by as many as eight points twice in the third quarter before going into full attack mode on the basket.

The Bulldogs had struggled to make shots in the third quarter, failing to take advantage of an extended stretch where Boise State had to sit forward A’Shanti Coleman after picking up a third foul.

Utti scored on a short jumper, Hanna Cavinder scored on drives on back-to-back possessions, Gamez scored on a drive.

The Bulldogs hit eight shots in a row to start the quarter, closing to within 64-63 with 5:34 to play on a three-point play by Gamez. They got a lead with 3:01 to go on two free throws by Gamez, lost it, but tied the score three times down the stretch in regulation.

The overtime did not start well, the Bulldogs missing their first four shots. But, as they had all game, they made huge plays to get back in it.

The rebound by Gamez was her ninth, her fourth at the offensive end. The Bulldogs out-rebounded Boise State 41-39, had 13 offensive rebounds leading to a 13-3 advantage in second-chance points. Fresno State also had a big edge scoring in the paint with 40 points to the Broncos’ 20.

“Our kids gave it everything they had,” White said. “Every night, you’re not always in control of some things. And I thought our kids battled, and they did what they had to make that game winnable.

“It’s unfortunate that we did not win.”

This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 1:15 AM.