Mike Krzyzewski and John Thompson III both refused to credit the Blue Devils’ 76-67 win to freshman center Greg Monroe’s second-half technical foul. Krzyzewski said that the the foul, Monroe’s fourth, simply “stopped the game for a while” and allowed Duke to “right the ship” after the Hoyas had cut Duke’s lead to four. Thompson was understandly more terse, saying that “The technical was a key part of the game, let’s not try to run from that,” after successfully dodging an initial question about the technical.
Still, it was clear that Monroe’s technical foul did change the tenor of the game. The Blue Devils surged from that point, going on a 15-3 run to put the game out of reach. Monroe was noticeably rattled, and when he came back into the game, he was so hesitant to foul out that he backed off on defense.
But the question still remains: Did Monroe actually merit the technical foul? Did he, in fact, say something to Big East official John Cahill, or did the referee attribute a comment from a fan to Monroe?
“A lot of people were saying things,” Monroe said after the game. “I don’t even believe he was really looking at the bench, but I know I definitely didn’t say anything. I can’t say if I heard someone else, but I know I definitely didn’t say anything.”
It wasn’t as black-and-white in the media.
Reporters on press row were only inches closer to the scene of the crime than the Cameron Crazies in the front row, and CBS cameras did not capture the offense on television, so the evidence consists solely of the personal testimonies of Thompson, Monroe–and, from a column by the Washington Post’s Mike Wise, a Steve Bartman-like figure wearing a yellow Steelers cap behind the Georgetown bench who is said to have yelled at the referee, but refused to disclose his name or role in the brouhaha to Wise.
The Fayetteville Observer’s Dan Wiederer was more adamant about the shamefulness of Cahill’s whistle, demanding an apology from the referee. He doesn’t write that the Blue Devils wouldn’t have won without the “phantom technical,” but he is correct in observing that the game may have been different:
There’s just no way around it. Basketball official John Cahill owes Georgetown an apology. He owes Greg Monroe an apology.
In the second half of a Saturday afternoon street-fight at Cameron Indoor Stadium between two of the nation’s elite teams, it was Cahill’s irritability that somehow provided the biggest momentum shift.
Players are supposed to change games. Coaches, too. But not referees.
And so as Monroe left Cameron still shaking his head over a 76-67 loss and still confused by the most ridiculous technical foul he’d ever received, you hoped Cahill was somewhere nearby hammering out a heartfelt “I’m sorry.”
Here’s how other news outlets handled the whodunnit:
- Georgetown had cut a 15-point Duke lead to 46-42 with 15:08 remaining in the second half when referee John Cahill signaled a technical foul on Monroe, who was sitting on the bench. Monroe said afterward that he hadn’t said anything to Cahill. (Raleigh News & Observer)
- The Hoyas (12-4), however, awakened from their slumber to close within 46-42. But that’s when Georgetown freshman Greg Monroe, a center in the scorebook but a point guard by trade, got whistled for a technical foul — his fourth foul — for something he supposedly said on the bench. Monroe seemed much more animated after the call than before it. (Durham Herald-Sun)
- Cahill walked toward the baseline. Thompson walked toward Cahill and continued to talk, although not heatedly. Cahill walked up the side by the Georgetown bench, turned and called the technical on a shocked Monroe. Monroe said that he said nothing to Cahill at any point. The call also saddled him with a fourth personal foul. (Winston-Salem Journal)
- But after an official heard something he didn’t like from the Georgetown bench, he spun on his heels and called a technical foul on freshman center Greg Monroe. Monroe’s claim that he didn’t say anything was ignored, and it offered little solace in the aftermath of the 76-67 loss that brought Georgetown’s daunting nonconference schedule to a disheartening close on Saturday. (Washington Post)
- But 6-11 freshman phenom Greg Monroe — who was on the bench with three fouls — drew his fourth on a technical. Monroe was flabbergasted, and immediately pointed to the crowd seated behind the Hoyas’ bench…. Monroe’s hushed voice was barely audible in the postgame news conference, but someone’s voice was audible over the Cameron crowd. (Greensboro News & Record)
- One of the key moments in the game occurred shortly after Georgetown had cut the Duke lead to four points. With 15:07 remaining, freshman center Greg Monroe was given a technical foul while he was sitting on the bench. Both Monroe and Thompson expressed disbelief at the call and pointed to a man sitting behind them, suggesting that the fan was the one who had spoken out of line. The call changed the momentum of the game, as Monroe picked up his fourth foul and Duke junior guard Jon Scheyer hit both free throws. (The Hoya)
- But almost as soon as the Blue Devils began dribbling the ball up the court, Cahill, still standing in front of the Georgetown bench, blew his whistle, emphatically signaled a “T” with his hands, and pointed at Hoyas’ freshman center Greg Monroe. Thompson and Monroe were incredulous. Monroe hadn’t said a word, read the lines on Thompson’s furrowed brow. I’m innocent, screamed Monroe’s exasperated visage. Thompson pleaded his case to each of the three referees and walked over to the scorer’s table, but to no avail. (The Hoya)
- But roughly 30 seconds later, Henry Sims was whistled for a blocking foul near the baseline and Monroe objected from the bench, prompting the technical foul from official John Cahill — the fourth foul on the Hoyas’ 6-foot-11 big man. (Associated Press)
- A longtime Big East official, Cahill issued a stern warning to Thompson and then turned his back on the Georgetown bench to record Sims’ foul at the scorer’s table at the 15:08 mark with the Hoyas still trailing by four. Whiplashing around moments later after clearly hearing some invective, Cahill walked straight back to the Georgetown bench, pointed directly at Monroe and whistled him for a technical foul. (Washington Times)
How did The Chronicle write about the technical?
But just as Georgetown started to wear down the Blue Devils, the Hoyas coughed up momentum in a costly error from their leading freshman, center Greg Monroe. After a foul was called on teammate Henry Sims, Monroe appeared to say something to an official walking by the Hoya bench.
Looking back, that was probably too casual of a description, especially given the consensus among other media outlets. We’ll edit the language and handle the case with more caution for Tuesday’s print edition.
Before then, though, what do you think: Did Monroe say anything? And how should reporters have written about the situation?
UPDATE: ESPN analyst (and Duke alumnus) Jay Bilas, who was sitting on press row, weighs in:
I didn’t hear the warning given to the Georgetown bench in the first five minutes of the second half with Duke leading 46-42. But I did see the reaction of Hoya freshman Greg Monroe when official John Cahill whistled Monroe for a technical foul (his fourth personal). Cahill’s back was turned to the Georgetown bench, then he turned around and called the technical on Monroe. Monroe reacted immediately, protesting that he said nothing, and pointed behind him to a fan. If Monroe was acting, he certainly fooled me. Georgetown didn’t lose because of that technical foul, but it was certainly a major factor in the game. I am not saying Monroe didn’t say anything because I don’t know. All I know is, if the official had ignored what he had heard behind his back and the technical foul call had not been made, nobody in the building or watching the game on television would have noticed a thing.
The technical foul call raises a couple of questions. First, was that technical call really necessary? To me, the answer is no, even though it may have been justifiable. The official’s back was to the bench, and he could not reasonably be expected to identify the culprit in that loud atmosphere. In my judgment, the official should have ignored it and moved on. Both benches were demonstrative and reacted to calls all game long. In my judgment, that was not the right place to draw the line.
john cahill seems to have a history of making big games being about him instead of the players. just like 2 years ago ohio st/xavier when greg odedn should have been tossed out the game when he shoved a xavier player in the tournament. also it seems every time duke plays a team with a dominant big man at at thier place it has the same story line. big man has 3 fouls in the first half ( mike sweetney,greg monroe, shaq,chris webber) why is that. duke is a soft team. there will be no final four this year and if they play gtown again on a neutral floor thew will lose. gtown has to learn how to rebound and play defense like the used to do it for 2 decades. they are not the temple owls. start pressing more. ask big john how to do it. nobody fears gtown like they used to. we are gtown lets show people who seem to have forgotten exactly who we are or who we used to be.
You can add Roy Hibbert to that list too.
there’s no way any ref would have called that on monroe unless he had been absolutely sure. he was well aware that monroe had three fouls already, and being from the big east, i’m sure he is familiar with monroe’s importance to their team. the scrutiny of an incorrect call would have been too much to bear – just look what he got after the correct one. monroe was whining and complaining for the ENTIRE GAME, as his reputation suggests he would. why is it such a stretch to think that that type of player would say something out of line to a ref?
or, for that matter, why should his “incredulity” after the call be believed? it’s the same act he pulled after being whistled for a blatant moving pick in the first half
Although I graduated from Georgetown and for the most part hate everything Duke (although have a lot of respect for the school and the basketball program) , I must say the call altered the game for the worse for both teams. The call ruined what was to that point one setting up to be one of the best games in college basketball this year. I’m not saying Georgetown would have won, in fact my guess is that they probably still lose, but the game is supposed to be decided by the players (on the court) and maybe you can say the coaches, but definitely not the refs.
My problem isn’t really the technical foul call. “T”s happen, its part of the game. However, it is fairly rare to have one on a player sitting on the bench. For a ref to call a “T” on a player on the bench, in my opinion, the player must say or do something so egregious or off color that there is no debate. In addition, to call the technical foul on a player on the bench, the ref should have to actually see the words come out of the players mouth. If ref John Cahill did in fact see Greg Monore say something that fit this description, great, good call, shot your shots Duke and lets move on. However; if he did hear something from the direction of the Georgetown Bench, which I’m sure he did, (just like I’m sure heard things from the Duke bench, the students, the press people and the other thousands of people who where present) but wasn’t exactly sure who said it and felt a Technical Foul was the correct call, he should have given it to the Georgetown coach, John Thompson III, and not an individual player, for not controlling his bench. Had this happened, there would have been little or no debate. Georgetown would have pointed to the fans, complained, figured they were getting homed and moved on.
I understanding refereeing is a very difficult job where you have millions of people screaming at you whether you blow your whistle or not, but this is a call that could very easily been ignored and probably should have. John Cahill is usually a good official and everyone makes bad calls, but this case he should apologize to the Hoyas and think twice going forward before he makes such a call in the future.
Being a “reasonable” gtown fan, I don’t blame the Cahill tech for the hoyas loss. I think in many aspects of the game gtown was simply outplayed and had some real problems matching up with Henderson. Duke likewise had problems with gtown’s offense when Monroe was in the game, I believe they were +15pts when Monroe was in the game. With that said when Cahill gave Monroe the tech it basically ended what at that time was a competitive game. I personally don’t like the way Duke plays, always try to get opposing players into foul trouble with cheap “flops” etc. and it worked with getting the freshman Monroe 3 early offensive fouls but the “phantom tech” really killed the game for the hoyas. It would be all speculation for me to say whether Monroe said anything to Cahill, so I’ll leave it at I hope these teams meet in March on a neutral court so we can find out who truly has the better team.
That was very unfortunate and ruined what could have been a much more exciting game. Monroe had 4 personal fouls and none were on the defensive end.
Wow, what a ridiculous call. I don’t even like either team, but it was obvious the Hoyas were getting the usual Cameron ref-job treatment. Really a pity because it ruined a highly enjoyable/watchable game. Why should we believe that Monroe said nothing? Because the entire bench, including Thompson — a man of great integrity — specifically pointed out that it was a fan in the crowd, who has been identified by the media (Mike Wise of the Post wrote it was a guy wearing a Steelers hat). Also, from what I have seen of Monroe this year, he is a very quiet solemn player, that takes care of his business and doesnt do much talking. As for the “blatant” moving pick, please, lets let the players decide this game. That has the equivalent neutralizing effect on gtown than if they called handchecking on duke’s perimeter players to nullify their pressure defense. Also, shall we bring up Singler going over the back every play, including the one that got called on Sims somehow, and led to the technical incident to begin with? Gtown had their share of shortfallings too, but lets be serious, that game was underhanded, and pretty much everyone knows it– just go to any talk board outside of Durham or ask any neutral observer. College basketball hasnt been about the kids in some time, unfortunately.
Ben Cohen–fine work, I like the synopsis and the accountability. Duke probably would have outlasted Georgetown (as the Hoyas seemed to have no answer for Henderson’s athleticism), but your piece, nonetheless, focuses on a crucial part of the game.
As a fan of the college game, I have to say that Cahill’s technical foul call on Greg Monroe was one of the most bizarre calls I’ve seen since Joey Crawford’s bench technical on Tim Duncan (see YouTube).
That said, Georgetown has been one of the more enjoyable teams to watch the past few years, and there is some old school charm in their methodical style of play and stoic demeanor. I think of players like Jonathan Wallace and Jeff Green exhibiting Jim Brown-like calm in the biggest moments of the Big East and NCAA Tournaments. That is why I have trouble reading posts like “mg’s,” which are just inaccurate, invalid, or ill-informed. A bad argument is a bad argument, regardless of which position it is trying to support.
mg said:
“there’s no way any ref would have called that on monroe unless he had been absolutely sure.”
This sounds like an awful case of begging the question. A thorough explanation would take more space than allotted here, so if need be, I’ll address in a subsequent post. But in short, you presuppose the truth of Cahill’s certainty, which is precisely what everyone else is holding up for debate.
Second, mg said:
“monroe was whining and complaining…as his reputation suggests he would.”
To what reputation are you referring? As far as I know, as a high school recruit, Monroe had the reputation of being such a fine student athlete, that combo basketball/academic powerhouses like Georgetown and Duke, heavily recruited him. He has thus far proven himself to be a mature basketball player, and showed no whining or complaining in games against UConn, Tennessee, Memphis, and Pitt. As Jay Bilas will say, Thompson III’s kids have a reputation for being some of the classiest players in the NCAA, and I do not believe Monroe is an exception.
Finally, mg said:
“why is it such a stretch to think that that type of player would say something out of line to a ref?”
Wow, what does “that type of player” even mean? It would not be such a stretch to believe Dennis Rodman or a Pacer’s Ron Artest or a Rasheed Wallace was called for a bench technical. However, I believe it is invalid for you to make any such comparison between Greg Monroe and an Artest, Rasheed, or Rodman type. Most reasonable basketball fans can agree that Monroe has, at least till now, shown himself to be a great talent, and a player mature beyond his years. MG, if you are going to make a personal attack on a college athlete, and a very good one at that…please, do your homework. If not, at least be charitable. Whatever type of player Monroe is, I’m pretty sure Coach K and any coach in Division I basketball would be happy to take “that type of player.”
mg, I’d be interested to see links establishing the “reputation” you suggest Monroe has regarding whining and complaining? I follow the Hoyas closely and am unaware of any such reputation. By the accounts I’ve read he’s a fairly even-tempered guy. Like most big men he tends to think he gets called for more fouls than he commits, but I don’t remember much whining. Incidentally, whining is not grounds for a T – if it were, Coach K would be ejected once a week
But making your case to the officials is part of the game, and K does it well.
The entire game was poorly officiated. There were ticky-tack fouls called away from the ball, as well as blatant hacks that were missed. Not to mention player contact during dead balls that should have resulted in more technicals. In this particular case, there is significant evidence that the whistle was unfair to Monroe. Considering the timing of the call and the importance of Monroe to Georgetown’s level of play it may indeed have been a game changer.
Pingback: The Hoya Paranoia » Duke Chronicle Analyzes Technical Coverage
mg- You obviously don’t know the game of basketball. Coach K is the biggest whiner in all of college basketball! Do you realy think Cahill knew exactly what was said and who exactly said something with all the noise, his back turned toward the bench, and in that shoe box they call Cameron? J.T. III runs a classy organization and has more class in his pinky toe than Coach K has in his whole body! Monroe’s fouls didn’t even come on the defensive end and thats a shame. Dukes players should get an “A “for acting, flopping on the floor everytime the Hoyas took the ball to the hoop. The Hoyas got hosed this time but I think Cahill might have pissed the wrong team! Watch out for the Hoyas and the Big East! because the ACC has nothing on us!
Pingback: The Hoya Paranoia » Preview: West Virginia
Pingback: What Did Greg Monroe Say? « Ben Cohen