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NBA officiating report says referees missed goaltending call in Clippers game

Clippers forward Blake Griffin has his layup challenged by Rockets center Dwight Howard during their game Saturday.

Clippers forward Blake Griffin has his layup challenged by Rockets center Dwight Howard during their game Saturday.

(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
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The NBA officiating report released Sunday said that referees missed a goaltending call against Dwight Howard late in a game between the Clippers and the Houston Rockets on Saturday.

With 17.2 seconds left and the Clippers down by two points, 107-105, Blake Griffin tried to tie the game with a tip-in. Howard touched the ball on the play, but the referees didn’t make the goaltending call.

In the report, the officials said “Howard (HOU) makes contact with the ball while part of it is still in the cylinder above the basket ring. As per the Rule Book, goaltending is only reviewable when there is a call on the floor. Since there was no call, the play is not reviewable.”

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The Clippers went on to lose the game, 109-105. In his postgame interview about that missed call, Griffin said he re-watched the play as soon as he got back to the locker room.

“It thought it was very, very clear,” Griffin said. “I actually watched it already, I couldn’t wait until I got home. I watched it several times. That’s textbook goaltending.

“It happens. That’s why there’s three of them out there. Refereeing a game is a very hard thing to do. I tried to referee a little league basketball game over the summer, and it didn’t go so well. The game is going fast.

”... They’re really good refs. But it’s unfortunate, because it could change the course of the game. “

The Clippers, who opened the season with four straight wins, have now lost two games in a row after also falling to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday. The Clippers will host the Memphis Grizzlies at Staples Center on Monday.

Twitter: @melissarohlin

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