My complaint about that play is not so much whether it was a foul, or whether it was -1 or -2, but that it was handled differently from the way similar plays were handled all year. I remember, I think, seeing Cooney get tagged with an -1 for less, and it was after the refs went to the monitor to look at it. Maybe that was last year, I don't know, but the point remains the same. And that's precisely the kind of thing that makes people say "The fix is in!"
I was dismayed by the offensive foul called on Gasser that cancelled a Koenig three.. The defender was clearly falling away before any contact. The ref that called that one struggled down the stretch. Also the blocking foul call on Kaminsky with about 4:00 to go was pretty weak.
"Kicked calls" didn't just suddenly start happening, as we all know (Brandon Triche says "Hi!"
). And they happen in every sport. My point is that they do happen, and I've always said if you don't want to get beaten by a bad call, play better sooner. In Wisconsin's case, they made 3 consecutive stops shortly after Koenig's basket was taken away, and that was where the game turned. If I was Bo Ryan, I'd be so proud of that minute and a half.