Matt L. Stephens

matthewstephens@coloradoan.com

The Mountain West provided clarity Friday to the question everyone had regarding the end of the first overtime between Boise State and CSU at Moby Arena.

Why was the stopwatch clock moving faster than the game clock?

And the answer means Boise State should have won the game.

On Thursday, the Mountain West released the video with a stopwatch overlay that officials David Hall, Verne Harris and Tom O'Neill had used to justify the refereeing crew waving off the 3-pointer by Boise State forward James Webb III at the buzzer that appeared to have won the game. In that video, though, taken an angle that showed the play unfolding beneath the arena clock, the stopwatch overlay counted tenths of a second at a faster rate than the clock above the backboard.

After reviewing the play further, the Mountain West office said Friday that there does appear to be a discrepancy with the stopwatch and that Webb appeared to have gotten the shot off in time; however, due to NCAA rules, a protest cannot be filed and the outcome of the game cannot be overturned. CSU won the game in double overtime 97-93. It was Boise State's fourth loss in its last five games.

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The MW said Friday the video file from the instant replay system has been shipped to DVSport headquarters for further analysis. "Multiple live and replay video angles captured by the replay systems were analyzed, and the replay angle used by the officials was re-enacted in comparison. The embedded stopwatch and game clock were compared on each of the video angles. Hand-timing was utilized earlier today to re-confirm timing outcomes.

"The continued investigation has now concluded the one replay angle ... that was utilized by the game officials was playing at just under full speed when aired by television and subsequently ingested by the replay system. Thus, the embedded stopwatch outpaced the video and led to a false reading."

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The video used for the live replay Wednesday was supplied by ESPN. The game was broadcast on ESPN3.com. Because this error was with the replay equipment, the officiating crew was not at fault and did its job properly, the conference said.

In addition, the investigation has highlighted an error in national replay protocol that DVSport will address immediately, according to the Mountain West's release. All conferences using DVSport replay will introduce a new policy where the only angles used will be those that were captured live. When the Coloradoan contacted DVSports on Thursday, the company said its system worked properly and that all questions should be directed to the Mountain West.

For insight and analysis on athletics around Northern Colorado and the Mountain West, follow sports columnist Matt L. Stephens at twitter.com/mattstephens and facebook.com/stephensreporting.

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