The SEC liked how its centralized replay review system for football games worked out last year. So it’s adopting it for basketball too.
The NCAA rules committee announced Friday that it has approved a request from the SEC to use an off-site review system, apparently similar to the setup last year in football.
The SEC’s move, which awaits final approval on June 13, was tucked among a number of other rules recommendations that the NCAA men’s basketball rules committee issued on Friday. The NCAA release said the committee voted to “approve the Southeastern Conference’s request to use a separate individual or individuals to collaborate with the on-court officials on all monitor reviews during their league games during the 2017-18 season. This collaboration will take place from a central location that is not at the game site.”
In football, replay reviews were handled in collaboration between a replay official at the stadium and a small group monitoring the game at SEC offices in Birmingham, Ala. That allowed the group to see more replays, and it did not appear to slow down the process.
“We appreciate the endorsement of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee of the SEC’s recommendation to permit collaborative replay for the sport of men’s basketball,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. “Our goal is to use the best-available resources to support our officiating programs and the use of technology has proven successful in football. This matter will be discussed further with our membership about procedures for implementing a collaborative replay process.”