Hall beats Georgetown with six men, league says

Seton Hall used a couple of extras to beat Georgetown in a Big East basketball game -- overtime and a sixth man on the court.

The Big East acknowledged Thursday that Seton Hall had six men on the floor for the final seconds of regulation in a game the Pirates won 93-82 in overtime.

"We're dealing with it internally," associate commissioner John Paquette said. "We have spoken with both coaches."

Paquette said the result of Wednesday night's game cannot be changed.

Georgetown coach Craig Esherick refused to comment. He went on a tirade earlier this season about the way the officials treated star forward Mike Sweetney in a game against West Virginia.

One official, Mike Kitts, worked both the West Virginia and Seton Hall games.

"Oh, no, you're not talking to me today. ... No comment," Esherick said.

The mistake was made after Georgetown called a timeout to set up its defense with 12 seconds left in regulation and the score tied at 72.

When the Pirates walked on the court, no one noticed six players came out.

Esherick didn't see six. Seton Hall coach Louis Orr didn't notice the error and neither did the officials -- Kitts, Les Jones and Fran Connolly.

"We were not aware of it until after the game," Orr said Thursday in the league weekly conference call. "Beyond that, there is nothing else we can say."

There was a tie-up with seven seconds to play, but Seton Hall retained possession.

On the ensuing inbounds play under the basket, Marcus Toney-El fed Damion Fray for an alley-oop dunk and a 74-72 lead with 6.4 seconds left.

Georgetown rushed the ball up the floor and Gerald Riley scored to tie the game. Seton Hall called another timeout with two seconds left, but a length-of-the-court pass by Greg Morton was stolen.

Pirates spokesman Marie Wozniak believes that Seton Hall only had five players on the court for that play.

If the officials had noticed the six men on the court, they could have called a technical foul on Seton Hall and given the Hoyas two free throws.

"The rules state that you can't go back," Paquette said. "Even if the officials noticed after Seton Hall had scored, they could not have changed that."

Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese has spoken with Art Hyland, the league's coordinator of men's basketball officiating, Paquette said. Hyland has spoken with the three officials.

Since the officials are independent contractors, the league cannot take disciplinary action against them, Paquette said. The league could take away future assignments.

Kitts is one of the country's top officials. He works the NCAA tournament each season, including the Final Four last year.

This is the second time this season a team has tried to play with six players against Georgetown.

South Carolina did it earlier this season after the media timeout. However, the officials noticed the extra man as the Gamecocks began to walk the ball up the floor and they called a technical foul.