http://nba-facts-and-rumors.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26470007

UPDATE 10:41 p.m. EST: A league spokesman for the NBA informs CBSSports.com that there was no "trigger" that occurred which would allow a review of Pierce's game winner, which meant that it stood as called. So that explains that. We'll have more on the trigger rules later.

UPDATE 11:22 p.m. EST: For what it's worth, a New York (yes, I hear you Celtics fans) media producer says he timed Amar'e Stoudemire's shot and it came out to .68 seconds . He claims that Pierce's shot was through at .7 as well .

It may not be a rivalry yet, but it's well on its way.

Paul Pierce nailed the game winner over the outstretched arms of Amar'e Stoudemire with .4 seconds left to give the Celtics their run-of-the-mill tough, relentless win 118-116. It was Paul Pierce, coming off a Ray Allen screen, forcing the Knicks to switch, getting Pierce with space on the right elbow, his sweet spot, against Amar'e Stoudemire (who was a beast from the first quarter on). Pierce pushed a little deeper than his favorite spot at the elbow, to the right wing, rose, fired, and...

Kaboom. Knicks lose. A heartbreaker, but that's what the Celtics do. With only .4 left on the clock, the Knicks got the ball to Amar'e Stoudemire for a prayer three. It was, amazingly, good, but after the buzzer.

Except...

Go back to the Pierce shot. When exactly did that ball go all the way through the net, as the NBA rulebook says it must for it to count?

That would be .6. At least. You might be able to make the argument that it landed at .8.

And if you're interested in the clock on the shot clock? Courtesy of @TheYankeeU on Twitter.

Couple things:

* It is well within Boston fans' right to contest that Amar'e still wouldn't have gotten the shot off in time. Trying to match up the times would be nearly impossible, but it was firmly cradled in his hand when the buzzer sounded. Would another.2 to .4 matter?
* It's also easy to make the argument that Boston might have defended differently (less concern about the lob) with .6 or .8 versus .04. Everything changes with that time differential. There's something in here about chaos theory and parallel universes, but we don't want to go there.
* The Knicks still very much had every chance to win this game and Boston took it from them.
* It's also possible this was a production issue with the network carrying the game, but we're willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here.

But it is a pretty interesting development that at home, in a situation where review is pretty much required, it would certainly appear as if things were amiss in Madison Square Garden.

Great win for Boston, but this shows just how tough of a loss it was for New York.

martin wrote:

lmao @ Spike

martin wrote:

cheers wrote:there is a still on another board that showed the ball clearing the hoop at exactly .7 ok who but a robot would be able to have stopped the clock at that instant human reaction by time keeper stopped clock at .4 that is pretty damn good when you are talking about milliseconds.

refs should have reviewed and put correct time on clock!

believe the knicks bench could have requested a review and time put back on the clock...

CAn't believe the coaching staff did not fight for more time. They dropped the ball on that one.

D'antoni should've heckled the refs for more time.

A. TRIGGER OF INSTANT REPLAY REVIEW OF GAME CLOCK MALFUNCTION:

Referees will consult instant replay if:
1. A play concludes (i) with no time remaining on the clock (0:00) at the end of any quarter or overtime period or (ii) at a point when the game officials believe that actual time may have expired in any quarter or overtime period; and
2. The game officials are reasonably certain that a game clock malfunction has occurred during the play. (A game clock malfunction includes situations caused by a mechanical malfunction or human error, such as a clock starting too soon or too late or an inbound play, stopping during play (whether or not it is re-started), or running too quickly during play, but does not include discrepancies resulting from what the officials determine to be normal reaction time or reasonable anticipation in starting the clock.

B. TIMING OF REVIEW:
The timing of such reviews would occur immediately following the play in which a game clock malfunction is identified.

C. REVIEWABLE MATTERS:
During an instant replay review of a game clock malfunction, the game officials would determine how much time actually expired, how much time (if any) is remaining in the period, and whether a shot attempt was made or a foul committed before time actually expired. In addition, the game officials would also be allowed to review certain other matters currently reviewable under the instant replay rules for shots taken with no time remaining on the game clock -- specifically, whether the shooter committed a boundary line violation and whether an 8-second backcourt violation occurred before the ball left the shooter's hand.

Andrew wrote:Don't think that the time remaining on the clock in this case was re-viewable. The clock guy should have helped the Knicks by letting the time run out completely.

A. TRIGGER OF INSTANT REPLAY REVIEW OF GAME CLOCK MALFUNCTION:

Referees will consult instant replay if:
1. A play concludes (i) with no time remaining on the clock (0:00) at the end of any quarter or overtime period or (ii) at a point when the game officials believe that actual time may have expired in any quarter or overtime period; and
2. The game officials are reasonably certain that a game clock malfunction has occurred during the play. (A game clock malfunction includes situations caused by a mechanical malfunction or human error, such as a clock starting too soon or too late or an inbound play, stopping during play (whether or not it is re-started), or running too quickly during play, but does not include discrepancies resulting from what the officials determine to be normal reaction time or reasonable anticipation in starting the clock.

B. TIMING OF REVIEW:
The timing of such reviews would occur immediately following the play in which a game clock malfunction is identified.

C. REVIEWABLE MATTERS:
During an instant replay review of a game clock malfunction, the game officials would determine how much time actually expired, how much time (if any) is remaining in the period, and whether a shot attempt was made or a foul committed before time actually expired. In addition, the game officials would also be allowed to review certain other matters currently reviewable under the instant replay rules for shots taken with no time remaining on the game clock -- specifically, whether the shooter committed a boundary line violation and whether an 8-second backcourt violation occurred before the ball left the shooter's hand.

SEe this is why nobody likes you.

HARDCOREKNICKSFAN wrote:.2 made all the difference @ the very end, and is the shot clock would have been @ .6, the outcome could have been different.

The foul could also have been called on Pierce for the pushoff, with would have made a difference.

Also MDA could have had the NYK foul before Pierce ever got that shot off, and even if the Celts would have hit the 2 free throws, the Knicks would have had about 7 seconds to get off the shot instead of that jerkoff .4 shot chock screwup BS.

I'm tired pf even reading about that game. Time to leave that mess in the rear view mirror, hope that the Knicks learn from the experience enough to NEVER let it happens again, and move on to the next game. This team has another winning streak to work on, starting tomorrow.

Intentionally foul when the game is tied?