NCAA Review: Officiating In LSU's WCBB Title Game Win over Iowa Didn't Meet Standards

The NCAA determined the officiating in last year's women's basketball national championship game between LSU and Iowa "did not meet expectations" following a review, according to the Associated Press' Doug Feinberg.

NCAA vice president for women's basketball Lynn Holzman said the accuracy rate for the championship contest was around 88 percent, below the average of 91 percent for a championship game. However, Feinberg reported an independent review determined the accuracy "was much lower" than the number cited by Holzman:

"According to the independent review, mistakes made during the game included a foul on [LSU forward Angel] Reese at the end of the first quarter that was her second of the game. In the third quarter, two offensive fouls were missed, one on each teams. Both resulted in video monitor reviews but neither ended up in penalizing the offensive player, said the official, who did the review for AP only on condition of anonymity because they feared the criticism could impact their career."

Many fans who watched LSU's 102-85 victory over Iowa live will say a detailed review wasn't required to conclude the standard of officiating wasn't up to par. The teams combined for 37 fouls, as the officials seemed a little too eager to blow the whistle.

Reese finished with three fouls, while teammate LaDazhia Williams had four. Hawkeyes starters Monika Czinano and McKenna Warnock both fouled out, and Caitlin Clark's four fouls limited her impact late in the game.

A delay-of-game technical foul on Clark with 1:03 in the third quarter was especially contentious.

According to Feinberg, the NCAA amended its rulebook regarding delay-of-game violations. Under the new guidelines, Clark wouldn't have received a technical.

As much as the officiating influenced the game, the referees didn't determine the outcome.

Reese posted a double-double (15 points and 10 rebounds) en route to winning Most Outstanding Player for the tournament. Jasmine Carson came off the bench to score 22 points for LSU.

On the other side, Iowa didn't get enough from the supporting cast. Clark finished with a game-high 30 points, but no other Hawkeyes player had more than 13.

With any luck, fans will be treated to a rematch in March, this time without the refs playing such an outsized role.