Korihait managed to beat Pyrintö with the numbers 84-81 in the men’s basketball league at the end of December – everyone thought. In reality, the teams had accounted for the same number of points. Now a rematch awaits.
It has been three weeks since Korihait took on Tampereen Pyrintö in Nystad. The game officially ended 84–81 – but the truth on the field was different.
A few days after the match drew attention Salon Seudun Sanomat that the result did not match. In reality, visiting Pyrintö had accounted for more points, and the match should have gone to extra time with the score 83-83 after regular time.
The basketball association’s competition manager Tom Westerholm followed the match on site and confirmed for Ilta-Sanomat that there were several calculation errors.
That the mistake was discovered at all was due to Pyrintö asking the association why LJ Thorpe’s two-pointer did not appear in the system. Soon after, three more calculation errors were discovered.
No protest in connection with the match
The league’s disciplinary and rules committee looked into the matter and announced on January 7 that the final result stands. Korihait was fined €2,000 and four match officials were suspended for one match.
At this stage, the decision was justified by the fact that neither team filed a protest about the result. According to the competition regulations, the protest must be submitted in connection with the match.
Pyrintö’s lawyer Jouko Juntunen tells Yle Sports that this was not possible.
– Pyrintö’s head coach Miikka Sopanen repeatedly asked during the match if the protocol was correct. He received affirmative answers from the judges, says the lawyer.
– In that situation, there was no reason for Pyrintö to protest. The judge has also signed the protocol.
Pyrintö pilot Miikka Sopanen was told that there was nothing wrong with the protocol during the scandalous match (archive picture).
Picture: Mika Kylmäniemi / All Over Pres
Tampereen Pyrintö, Korisliiga, Miikka Sopanen
Replay awaits
On Friday, the union came up with a new decision. The match between Korihait and Pyrintö will be replayed on Tuesday, January 24.
In the press release, it is stated that in the recording of the match it was possible to discover several errors linked to the match protocol and the scoreboard, and that these affected the final result.
Korihait can still take the case further to the sport’s appeals body.
– We are still discussing the matter, comments Korihait’s operations manager Casper Santanen Länsi-Suomi.
An extra spice in the soup is that the regular season would actually end on Saturday. In the two remaining games, Pyrintö can still climb up to a place in the upper end series. Korihait is league jumbo.
