The NCAA is coming under fire for a mistake that could have — and should have — been easily avoided.
North Carolina State met Tennessee Chattanooga in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Tournament on Saturday. A notable change in the game happened at halftime and it involved the third team on the court — the officials. Referee Tommi Paris was replaced at halftime.
Why was Paris replaced? She has a degree from Tennessee Chattanooga.
“Paris’ LinkedIn profile shows that she received a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga,” Chantel Jennings of The Athletic reported. “Officials are not supposed to have any conflicts with either team in the game. In this situation, both the NCAA should’ve made sure she was not assigned to this game and Paris should’ve disclosed her own personal conflict.”
Oops.
The Wolfpack dominated Saturday’s game, winning 64-45 and leading 26-17 at halftime.
Making this situation worse, though, is that, according to Jennings, Paris officiated a December game between Tennessee-Chattanooga and Mississippi State — a 59-53 Mocs win.
It makes complete sense to have a rule that prohibits people from officiating games involving schools they attended. That’s not necessarily an indictment on the officials, it’s just a way to easily avoid potential backlash. To that it, it’s completely baffling that the NCAA somehow missed this for a regular season game, let alone in the NCAA Tournament.
Several people were asking that very question.
This is a crazy thing to discover and act on halfway through a game lol. https://t.co/nJh0gGHayX
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) March 24, 2024
How does this happen? https://t.co/G7fQ6ehjjD
— Robbie Faulk (@robbiefaulkOn3) March 23, 2024
You’re a joke @NCAA https://t.co/8LFMUKEec2
— Swindeazy 🏴☠️ (@swindeazy) March 23, 2024
How is this not flagged beforehand? https://t.co/LnlDFrSSNb
— Eric (@nemchocke) March 23, 2024
Omgggg. https://t.co/fKPBgB3v7I
— Lindsay Gibbs (@linzsports) March 23, 2024
