Raptors sound off after controversial loss to Kings

Terrence Ross was denied a game-tying three pointer and the Toronto Raptors fell to the Sacramento Kings.

The Toronto Raptors weren’t happy with how things ended in Sunday’s loss against the Sacramento Kings, and rightly so.

With the Raptors trailing by three and 2.4 seconds remaining on the clock, Terrence Ross grabbed a deflected inbound pass and converted a long three-pointer that beat the buzzer and sent the game to overtime.

But upon further review, officials determined that Ross didn’t get the shot off in time because the clock didn’t start when DeMarcus Cousins deflected the ball and overturned the ruling on the floor, handing victory to the Kings.

Raptors forward Patrick Patterson addressed the bizarre ruling after the game on Twitter, while also pointing out another discrepancy with the shot clock.

Patterson wasn’t the only player to voice his displeasure after the game. Injured big man Jared Sullinger also brought attention to the shot clock error, while Ross and coach Dwane Casey spoke to the media about what transpired and the explanation they were given by the referees.

Kyle Lowry, on the other hand, chose to bite his tongue.

The Raptors (8-5) have the option of appealing the outcome of the game, outlined in the rule below.

The last successful protest occurred following a 2008 game between the Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat. Shaquille O’Neal was disqualified from the game with 51.9 seconds remaining despite only having five fouls after being mistakenly attributed a foul earlier in the contest. As a result, the NBA ruled that the Hawks and Heat would replay the final 51.9 seconds the next time the two teams met, while the Hawks were fined $50,000 due to a violation of league rules by Atlanta’s official scorer.

Unlike the Atlanta-Miami situation the Raptors and Kings don’t play each other again this season, adding even more confusion to an already murky situation.

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