Madison Square Garden has seen literally thousands of games. It’s been through a lot. But a delay during a game between BYU and Clemson on Tuesday night might be unique.
The backboard was impacted when BYU big man Keba Keita hung on the left side of the rim. It seemed to jar the backboard off balance.
After officials noticed it, they halted play. And immediately operations staff came out onto the floor to look at the issue. It wasn’t a quick fix, unfortunately for BYU and Clemson.
“I have been told by Madison Square Gardens operations that it’s not a broken rim, it’s that the backboard is not level,” sideline reporter Kris Budden said. “They did go and get, obviously, a taller ladder. I was also told by officials that it would be easier to bring the rim down to be able to level it. I was also told that this may take a few minutes.”
After initially bringing out what looked to be an 8-foot ladder, the crew working the game opted to haul out an even bigger one. They placed this one behind the backboard and went to work.
Officials had to take off several protective joints on the back portion of the stanchion, allowing them to get to the mechanical pieces that would control the backboard’s tilt and angle. ESPN showed several angles of crew members working on various bolts as BYU and Clemson players looked on.
Following the fix to the rim, officials gave teams a few minutes to warm up again. That’s how long they had been idle while crews were working.
“The players have been doing whatever they can to try and stay warm and stay loose,” Budden reported. “BYU came out with their sleeveless sweatshirts trying to stay warm. Over on the Clemson bench they were all stretching, having their massage guns, trying to do whatever to stay loose as they start this three-minute warmup.”
Clemson led the game 47-38 with 11:40 left in the contest at the time of the delay. The Tigers had built as much as 21-point lead in the first half, but the Cougars have worked their way back into the contest.
Florida is set to take on UConn in the second game of the Jimmy V Classic on Tuesday night. The game’s start time will likely be impacted by the delay.
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