Controversy arises over ending to West Orange-Ocoee basketball game

[video width="852" height="480" mp4="http://www.wotimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/WestOrangeOcoeeClip.mp4"][/video]

The Class 8A District 3 semifinal between West Orange and Ocoee on Feb. 4 — a game the Warriors won in overtime, 81-75 — has become the subject of some controversy.

The controversy stems from the belief that West Orange head coach Eric Jones might have knocked the ball out of Ocoee junior Damerit Brown’s hands during a pivotal sequence late in the game.

With about eight seconds remaining and the Knights ahead by two points, Ocoee inbounded to Brown, who made a move up the sideline near the Warriors’ bench. Brown turned the ball over after dribbling out of bounds at about the six-second mark, setting up a play with three seconds remaining during which West Orange’s Quinton Forrest scored as time expired to send the contest into overtime.

A video from the game  shows Jones, who was waving instructions to his defenders, possibly touch the ball as Brown made his move up the sideline. The play in question can be viewed in the above video and starts at the 1:10 mark after a made free throw by West Orange.

On Monday, Jones said any contact with the ball was unintentional and that it is his impression that Brown was called for stepping out of bounds before the contact occurred. The coach expressed concern that his integrity as a coach might be questioned.

“I just care about my integrity,” Jones said. “I was directing my team to come and trap, and the ref blew the whistle as he was going up the sideline. Honestly, I had no idea that he was even that close to me.”

The Warriors will take on Boone Feb. 12 in the Class 8A Region 1 Quarterfinals of the state tournament.

Ocoee coach Rob Gordon said it wasn’t until Friday that he learned about the video.

“My freshman coach said he saw the incident on the video, but I wasn’t able to really get a good look at it until Friday evening,” Gordon said. “That was after I received several texts from my players wanting to know what was going to be done about the whole situation, because by that time, (the video) had been on Hudl. When I put it up on full screen on Hudl, I was able to see what they were so upset about.”

Gordon, who said Athletic Director Steve McHale and Principal William Floyd have given them assurances that they would do whatever is possible to follow up, said he was disappointed the incident might have cost his team a trip to the playoffs.

“Losing possession of that ball basically changed the outcome of that game,” Gordon said. “On that particular play, Damerit immediately turned around and started pointing toward the coach (Jones), and (because) the official didn’t see it, and, from our viewpoint, we didn’t see what had occurred, immediately he makes that reaction and nobody understood what he was saying or doing.

“I’ve been asked the question, ‘Well, why didn’t the kid (Brown) tell you?’” he added. “There wasn’t time for him to tell me. For him to have to live with that outcome ... I’m just extremely disappointed for that young man.”