SEC to use video review for basketball

The SEC liked how its centralized replay review system for football games worked last season. So it’s adopting it for basketball, too.

The NCAA rules committee announced Friday it has approved a request from the SEC to use an off-site review system, apparently similar to the set-up last year in football.

The SEC’s move, which awaits final approval June 13, was tucked among a number of other rules recommendations that the NCAA men’s basketball rules committee issued 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.

Georgia coach Mark Fox is a member of the NCAA rules committee. The Bulldogs had an infamous run-in with a clock review last season, when a clock malfunction basically cost them a potential win at Texas A&M. But this move wouldn’t appear aimed specifically at that, as that was a failure of officials on the court to realize the clock had stopped.