NBA admits bad 6th foul call on Dwight Howard from Game 1
With 17 seconds to play in overtime on Sunday night, Dwight Howard was whistled for a foul on Joel Freeland while fighting for an offensive rebound.
It was his sixth foul of the game, meaning Howard's night was done. Not only that, but Freeland split a pair of the ensuing free throws, extending Portland's lead to 122-120, the game's final score.
On Monday, the NBA admitted that the wrong call was made on the play and that the foul should have been whistled on Freeland, instead.
NBA issues statement on Houston-Portland Game 1: Foul on Dwight Howard w/ 10.8 seconds left in OT should've been called on Joel Freeland.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) April 21, 2014
Howard would have then received two free throws, and even if the 54.7 percent shooter split a pair, the game then would have been tied with 10 seconds to play rather than the Blazers being up two.
That one definitely has to hurt for Rockets fans, and the NBA certainly can't be happy that this is the second major officiating blunder that has decided a playoff game already.