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The controversial final moments of Pewamo-Westphalia’s state title win over Iron Mountain

Iron Mountain was called for a traveling violation on a breakaway layup and for an  intentional foul with 0.07 seconds left to allow Pewamo-Westphalia to escape with
a 53-52 win in the MHSAA Division 3 state finals.

(3-19-19) This past week Centerville (Ohio) lost in the Regional Finals….the Elks in the Regional semifinal lost one of their key Senior players after he received two technical fouls very late in the game, he was not allowed to play in the final.  The calls caused quite a stir among fans from around the state and the response that came from the OHSAA caught the attention of college basketball analyst Jay Bilas who tweeted his thoughts on those actions.

Today the Michigan High School Athletic Association made a statement about the final seconds of the Pewamo-Westphalia- Iron Mountain D3 Boys Basketball State Championship.

MHSAA statement

Here is what happened in that game that caused the outrage –

In the game’s final seconds the three-person officiating crew called  a traveling violation on an Iron Mountain layup that would have given Iron Mountain a 54-51 lead with 5.3 seconds remaining.  The next call that caused another stir came with just .07 seconds remaining when an intentional foul was called on Iron Mountain of a Pewamo-Westphalia half-court shot. Two free throws (and the ball) were given to Pewamo-Westphalia who made them both for a 53-52 win.

MLive You Tube Video

Iron Mountain coach Bucky Johnson talks about the controversial ending to the MHSAA Division 3 state title loss to Pewamo-Westphalia. Iron Mountain was called for a travel and an intentional foul in the final seconds, allowing P-W to escape with a 53-52 win.

For both Centerville and Iron Mountain it will take a lot of time to pass to get over (if ever they do) the disappointment of what happened to end their 2019 basketball season.

For both state associations and referees…nothing will change. Their actions and comments in both situations are frustrating and disappointing to those two teams.

MLive You Tube Video

Watch Pewamo-Westphalia’s Collin Trierweiler win the Division 3 state championship with two free-throws with 0.7 seconds left to claim a 53-52 win over Iron Mountain on March 16, 2019.