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Official admits he will get ‘booed real bad’ for call during Duke-UNC game
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Referee Roger Ayers knew he was going to have a make a call that would not sit well with the crowd inside the Dean E. Smith Center Saturday night.
The referee on hand for the rivalry meeting between Duke and North Carolina, Ayers and his crew made the decision to upgrade what was originally called a common foul of Tar Heel star RJ Davis. Instead, Davis was whistled for a hook-and-hold which resulted in 2 free throws for Kyle Filipowski and possession for Duke late in the game.
When relaying the decision to the broadcast crew, Ayers correctly predicted he would get a hearty boo to the decision:
“I’m about to get booed real bad here, but I’m going to upgrade that to a hook-and-clamp on RJ Davis. They’ll get 2 shots and get the ball,” said Ayers.
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Referee Roger Ayers correctly predicts he’s “about to get booed real bad” after a foul review during the final minute of UNC’s win over Duke. pic.twitter.com/PiW4v0fkK3
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 4, 2024
The call was undoubtedly controversial in nature, especially with Davis exiting the exchange banged up after being hit by his teammate in the aftermath. Replay reviews did show Davis appearing to grab Filipowski’s arm with his left hand after the two were initially tangled up.
Either way, the call did not hurt UNC. Filipowski missed a free throw and the Blue Devils turned the ball over as the Tar Heels closed out a win.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
