I’m trying not to be bitter. I’m trying, really. When Hardy scored that basket at the end, I was willing to tip my cap and be gracious.  A really tough shot that went in. Gilbert Brown did a fine job guarding him and driving him deep, without touching him — or breathing on him — to get whisteled for the foul you know Hardy would have gotten.

Well, I was at first. But then the replays. The angles. Oh, by the inverted ghost of Tim Higgins. How could a ref standing right there not see that? Ignore it? Not make the right call?

Don’t get me wrong, Pitt did enough wrong in the game. You could make the case that this was the game were Pitt’s poor foul shooters — Robinson, McGhee and Taylor combined 2-9 on FTs — finally cost the team a game.

There’s plenty. But when a call that egregious is missed. When it isn’t one, but both feet that appear to have been over and on the line? When the official called everything for Hardy in the final minute? Then pretends nothing was amiss?

In very fine new book called, Scorecasting, there’s a chapter entitled “So, what is driving home field advantage?” It somewhat helps explain much of this. It talks of referee bias in home court situation. Not blatantly favoring a team, but how it influences games. It is most obvious when it comes to plays and fouls that involve turnovers. Suffice to say, this falls in as one of the most blatant examples you can encounter.