Controversial Buzzer-beater Lifts Dexter To Class C North Boys Basketball Title

Parker Parker Ponte’s controversial 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired lifted undefeated Dexter past top-ranked Central Aroostook of Mars Hill 50-48 in the Class C North boys basketball final on Saturday night at the Cross Insurance Center. Some video replays and still photos after the game suggested that the shot may have left Ponte’s shooting hand after the red lights on the backboard that indicate time had expired came on, but there is no provision for the use of replay in Maine high school basketball. The National Federation of State High School Associations, which oversees interscholastic athletics around the country including Maine, provides for member states to use instant replay monitor for basketball during state championship series contests and only with 0:00 showing on the game clock at the end of regulation play or overtime, to determine whether a shot is a 2-pointer or 3-pointer or whether the shot was released before time expired. According to an October 2019 story in the Sentinel-Record of Hot Springs, Arkansas, Arkansas became the 17th state to use replay at some level in state basketball tournaments, according to NFHS communications director Bruce Howard. Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Indiana, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and West Virginia use replay only for state championship games, according to the report. Michigan, Ohio, Texas and Wisconsin use replay for state finals and semifinals, while Hawaii, New Mexico and North Dakota have replay for the finals, semifinals and early-round games, the Sentinel-Record said. The Maine Principals’ Association has not adopted an instant replay provision. Trailing 48-47, Dexter gained possession of the ball after a Central Aroostook turnover and called time with 13.4 seconds left. The Tigers then worked the ball into the frontcourt against considerable Central Aroostook defensive pressure before Nathan Richards passed to Ponte on the left wing behind the 3-point arc. Ponte took one dribble before launching a jump shot that produced his only points of the game as the orange box light behind the backboard came on to indicate that time had expired and the final buzzer sounded. “What we said in the timeout was that there was going to be a breakdown somewhere, just try to find a good shot and we did,” Dexter coach Peter Murray said. After a brief discussion among game officials the shot was counted as originally ruled on the court and the game ended. “They played tough defense, honestly, and I took one dribble and pulled up,” Ponte said.