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There will be no video replay in high school basketball.

That ruling became official today, May 1, by the National Federation of State High School Associations, which the Ohio High School Athletic Association follows.

Mary Struckhoff, assistant director of the NFHS and basketball rules editor, said this morning that the 11-person committee reviewed the proposal for two weeks, but after much discussion, voted against the use of instant replay because of three reasons.

"Not all state tournaments in all the state facilities even have replay capabilities," Struckhoff said. "We were concerned with the inequities that'd be presented.

"Philosophically, our committee felt that at the interscholastic level it is not appropriate. There are amateur players, coaches, officials, people at the table, and once you have replay, you open a Pandora's box and you can't go back. And really, it didn't seem fair to have high school officials officiating contests throughout the season without replay, and then expect them to use it in the state championship. You set them up for failures."

Three proposals were considered by the committee after three states — including Ohio — had last-second shots in championship games.

On March 10 in the Division I girls state final, Mount Notre Dame stunned Lakota West High 69-67 on a last-second layup that appeared to come after time had expired.

Video replays and still photographs clearly showed the game-ending red light illuminated while the ball was still in the right hand of MND freshman Kathryn Reynolds.

"That's the way it is," West coach Andy Fishman said. "My reaction is the powers-at-be must feel it's the only way to keep things consistent through all the states because the different tournament facilities don't have access to it.

"I again feel that in situations where there are three officials, when there are calls to be made that have to do with time and place — when the clock started or was it a 2 or 3 — those things need to be discussed among the crew prior to exiting the floor."

Henry Zaborniak — an assistant commissioner of the OHSAA — submitted two proposals to the NFHS in early April.

Struckhoff said there are seven states that do not follow the NFHS' basketball rules because they have shot clocks, and another — Minnesota — that does permit video review in basketball and ice hockey.

Minnesota has done it for two years, but because of it, it forfeits its right to have a voice in the rules committee. The OHSAA does have the option to petition to experiment with video replay; Struckhoff said Ohio follows the NFHS' rules "to a 'T' in all sports."

"State tournament games are the ultimate contests," Struckhoff said. "But what about the district or the state semis, or games prior to the state tournament that's just as important? Where do you draw the line? It's just a scary place to go."

Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5113 or smatthews@coxohio.com.

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