{"id":2414764,"date":"2025-03-24T18:11:01","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T22:11:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/march-madness-buzzer-beater-sparks-controversy-many-are-saying-it-shouldnt-have-counted\/"},"modified":"2025-03-24T18:12:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T22:12:30","slug":"march-madness-buzzer-beater-sparks-controversy-many-are-saying-it-shouldnt-have-counted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/march-madness-buzzer-beater-sparks-controversy-many-are-saying-it-shouldnt-have-counted\/","title":{"rendered":"March Madness Buzzer-Beater Sparks Controversy &#8211; Many Are Saying it Shouldn&#8217;t Have Counted"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmarch-madness-buzzer-beater-sparks-controversy-many-are-saying-it-shouldnt-have-counted%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2414764&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses an exciting moment from the NCAA Men&#8217;s Division I Basketball Tournament, commonly known as &#8220;March Madness.&#8221; It highlights a recent game in which the Maryland Terrapins narrowly defeated the Colorado State Rams with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-high-school-teams-incredible-playoff-buzzer-beater-gets-reversed-sparking-outrage\/\" title=\"Video: High School Team&#039;s Amazing Playoff Buzzer-Beater Overturned, Causing Outrage\">buzzer-beater shot<\/a> by freshman Derik Queen, finishing the game at 72-71. This game featured several lead changes, tying the record for the second-most in a NCAA tournament game in the past two years.<\/p>\n<p>However, the winning shot sparked a debate about whether it should have counted, as some viewers suggested that Queen may have committed a traveling violation by taking an extra step. Opinions were divided; while some analysts argued he took three steps, a former referee stated that the play&#8217;s technicality regarding possession made it more ambiguous. Social media reactions largely supported the idea that it was a travel, but the final score remains unchanged, allowing Maryland to advance to the Sweet Sixteen against the University of Florida.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>March, we finally have a bit of true madness.<\/p>\n<p>The NCAA Men&rsquo;s Division I Basketball Tournament &mdash; better known to many as &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/march-madness-star-brings-bible-podium-heartbreaking-loss-talks-jesus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">March Madness<\/a>&rdquo; &mdash; officially kicked off Thursday (following the &ldquo;First Four&rdquo; play-in games), and while there have been plenty of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/governor-orders-attorney-general-open-investigation-march-madness-miscarriage-justice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">controversies<\/a> and upsets, actual on-court madness has been relatively muted thus far.<\/p>\n<p>That was, until Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The slate of games featured an electric buzzer-beater that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-irreversible-consequences-of-school-closures\/\" title=\"The Irreversible Consequences of School Closures\">captured national attention<\/a>, and not all of it was positive.<\/p>\n<p>To wit, the Maryland Terrapins beat the Colorado State Rams Sunday by the slimmest winning margin possible, 72-71.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>As ESPN <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/mens-college-basketball\/story\/_\/id\/44378618\/derik-queen-buzzer-beater-lifts-maryland-sweet-16\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">noted<\/a>, it was a wild back-and-forth affair (in fact, ESPN reported that the winning shot accounted for the 15th lead change of the game, which tied for second most in an NCAA tournament game the past two years) that eventually ended with a historic shot.<\/p>\n<p>But should it have counted?<\/p>\n<p>Maryland freshman Derik Queen &mdash; &ldquo;only the fourth freshman to hit a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">buzzer-beating game-winner<\/a> in the NCAA men&rsquo;s tournament since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985&rdquo; according to ESPN &mdash; had a play drawn up for him where the 6-foot-10 star would take the final shot.<\/p>\n<p>You can watch the moment for yourself below:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">MARYLAND MADNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<\/p>\n<p>TERPS WIN IT! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/NO0UozXVyj\">pic.twitter.com\/NO0UozXVyj<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; CBS Sports (@CBSSports) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CBSSports\/status\/1903979294570827813?\">March 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The moment, epic in its own right, immediately came under a microscope.<\/p>\n<p>Eagle-eyed viewers may have noticed that Queen appeared to take an extra step after picking up the basketball &mdash; a violation commonly referred to as a &ldquo;travel&rdquo; in basketball.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Current NCAA rules allow a gather and two steps. A slow motion view of a separate angle, posted by March Madness and slowed down by me, shows he clearly gathered and subsequently took three steps,&rdquo; CBS Sports&rsquo; Kyle Boone <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/college-basketball\/news\/did-derik-queen-travel-evidence-experts-split-on-marylands-thrilling-buzzer-beater-vs-colorado-state\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>CBS&rsquo;s own former referee on staff &mdash; ex-NFL referee Gene Steratore &mdash; actually disputed that claim, based on a technicality.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;By rule, the dribble doesn&rsquo;t end until there&rsquo;s firm possession with one hand locked, but more times than not, with two hands. [&hellip;] When he brings it back up, we don&rsquo;t know if that&rsquo;s fully possessed,&rdquo; Steratore said, per CBS. &ldquo;If he bobbles that at that point, he could continue to bobble that basketball all the way to the hoop without a travel. So, you&rsquo;ve got to wait until you can define firm possession. [&hellip;]\n<p>&ldquo;To me, it just really doesn&rsquo;t jump off the screen as anything big.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Social media appeared to be far more on Boone&rsquo;s side than Steratore&rsquo;s when it came to this March Madness <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/basketball-star-goes-viral-amazing-perspective-heartbreaking-march-madness-loss\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Can&rsquo;t believe they didn&rsquo;t call this a travel.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Isenhart Stables &#128014;&#127801; $CROWN (@IsenhartStables) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IsenhartStables\/status\/1903979775749685276?\">March 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Nice travel<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Dan (@bridgtowndaniel) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/bridgtowndaniel\/status\/1903979588956352865?\">March 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">So, you get 3 steps after the dribble in the tournament? Got it&#128077;<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Tony Parks (@Parks67) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Parks67\/status\/1903980452873920644?\">March 24, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Regardless, the final score is in the books, and doesn&rsquo;t appear likely to change.<\/p>\n<p>Queen and his fellow 11-seed Maryland teammates will now play 1-seed University of Florida on Thursday in a Sweet Sixteen match-up.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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The NCAA Men\u2019s Division I Basketball Tournament, commonly referred to as \u201cMarch Madness,\u201d officially began on Thursday after the \u201cFirst Four\u201d play-in games. Although there have been numerous controversies and surprises, the actual chaos on the court has been somewhat subdued until now. That changed on Sunday when an exhilarating buzzer-beater drew national attention, though not all of it was favorable. The Maryland Terrapins narrowly defeated the Colorado State Rams with a final score of 72-71.<\/p>\n<p>As ESPN highlighted, it was a thrilling back-and-forth game that ended with a historic shot\u2014marking the 15th lead change and tying for second most in an NCAA tournament game over the past two years. However, questions arose about whether that shot should have counted. Maryland freshman Derik Queen became only the fourth freshman to hit a buzzer-beating game-winner since 1985 when he took what was designed to be his final shot.<\/p>\n<p>The moment quickly came under scrutiny as some viewers noticed Queen seemed to take an extra step after gathering the ball\u2014a potential traveling violation in basketball. CBS Sports\u2019 Kyle Boone pointed out that current NCAA rules permit one gather and two steps but suggested that slow-motion footage indicated Queen may have taken three steps.<\/p>\n<p>However, former NFL referee Gene Steratore contested this interpretation based on technicalities regarding possession rules in basketball. He argued that without clear possession established at one point during his movement toward the basket, it wouldn\u2019t qualify as traveling.<\/p>\n<p>Social media reactions leaned more towards Boone&#8217;s perspective than Steratore&#8217;s regarding this controversial moment in March Madness. Despite differing opinions on whether or not it should have been called a travel violation, Maryland\u2019s victory stands firm as they prepare to face top-seeded University of Florida in their upcoming Sweet Sixteen matchup<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2414765,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Derik-Queen-shoots.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[10087,50410,52029,39022,34619],"class_list":["post-2414764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-buzzer-beater","tag-controversy-2","tag-march-madness","tag-ncaa-basketball","tag-sports-news"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Derik-Queen-shoots.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2414764"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2414768,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2414764\/revisions\/2414768"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2414765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2414764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2414764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2414764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}