It was around the beginning of the fourth quarter as West Virginia women's basketball battled North Carolina for a spot in the Sweet 16 that I realized the officials in Chapel Hill had no intentions of letting the Mountaineers advance to the Sweet 16.
I had an inkling throughout the game based on a number of questionable calls, of course. The officiating at no point seemed unbiased. Every time the No. 6-seed Mountaineers pulled close to the No. 3-seed Tar Heels or earned the lead -- anytime the momentum seemed to be swinging towards the WVU, really -- the referees found a few fouls, infractions, or violations to pin on the Mountaineers. The team's best players were in foul trouble early and often.
But it was the first few minutes of the final period of play, when the referees called three consecutive fouls against the Mountaineers in a single defensive possession -- including one that sent starter Kylee Blacksten to the bench -- that I knew what the score really was in Chapel Hill.
I proved to be correct in my assumption -- UNC walked off their homecourt on Monday night with a 58-47 win over WVU, advancing to the Sweet 16. The Tar Heels may be the better team in actuality -- they were a higher seed in the tournament, after all -- but the officials refused to give the Mountaineers a fair shake from the first whistle.
UNC players were physical with WVU all evening long -- you could rarely go more than one or two possessions without seeing a Mountaineer player on the hardwood, and multiple WVU shots were affected during crucial stretches of the game. Meanwhile, the touchiest of fouls were whistled on nearly every possession against WVU.
At one point, a Tar Heel guard plowed into the lane completely out of control, stumbled over her feet while attempting to weave between defenders, and a foul was called on the Mountaineers.
You'd think when it comes to March Madness, you'd garner a bit better effort on part of the officials -- it's a pretty important time of the year. Yet, time and time again, questionable calls turned what was a close game into a constant struggle for the Mountaineers to keep pace with UNC.
It likely leaves a bad taste in WVU fans' mouths after their men's basketball team was snubbed from an NCAA Tournament appearance in favor of North Carolina despite most bracketologists predicting the opposite occurrence, which was followed by scrutiny towards UNC AD Bubba Cunningham, who happened to chair the Selection Committee. He also earned bonuses for UNC tournament appearances.
So to see the Mountaineers bow out of the women's tournament in Chapel Hill at the hands of poor officiating makes an already bad look for UNC appear even worse. The cause of this injustice could be explained by many factors. The more paranoid could seek to establish a connection between the officials at a UNC home game and Cunningham, who likely also receives bonuses for women -- though I'm sure the NCAA plays a larger role in selecting tournament officials than the school.
Maybe it was an ESPN desire to draw the favorable Duke-UNC rivalry in the Sweet 16 -- such a historic basketball rivalry between two historic brands is quite appealing. While neither school is as prominent a women's basketball program as UConn or Tennessee, both are among the Top 30 winningest Division 1 programs and basketball culture runs deep inside the region both schools are located.
Perhaps it was just true incompetence, a poor job done by a crew having an off night or unprepared for the job.
But in the end, the result was the same, and we ought not mince words about it: West Virginia women's basketball was robbed of a fair shot at a Sweet 16 appearance, and fans have a reason to be upset.