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In the middle of a tight first half between Iowa basketball and Illinois in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, the game was delayed for an odd and annoying reason.
With 7:43 remaining in the first half and Iowa leading Illinois 22-20, Saturday's game temporarily paused because the buzzer at Toyota Center wouldn't turn off, creating a constant low blaring noise coming from the scoreboard overhanging the court. Game officials and NCAA officials clustered around the scorer's table, and eventually someone turned the scoreboard completely off and the noise stopped.
Both teams remained on the court during the delay. Officials rolled out the warm-up basketballs and players stayed loose by shooting baskets.
More: Iowa vs Illinois live score updates: March Madness bracket update, how to watch
The Houston Rockets' regular in-house crew is operating the game clock, scoreboard and shot clock for NCAA regional games. The Rockets installed their state-of-the-art scoreboard this fall ahead of the 2025-26 NBA season.
According to the TBS broadcast, the game was delayed for 11 minutes, long enough to prompt a brief warm-up period for both teams.
Play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan, as he typically does with strange happenings during games, provided viewers with fun commentary during the stoppage:
Game officials at the scorer's table used a canned air horn for the remainder of the first half.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa vs Illinois Elite 8 game delayed by horn that wouldn't turn off
Continue reading...
With 7:43 remaining in the first half and Iowa leading Illinois 22-20, Saturday's game temporarily paused because the buzzer at Toyota Center wouldn't turn off, creating a constant low blaring noise coming from the scoreboard overhanging the court. Game officials and NCAA officials clustered around the scorer's table, and eventually someone turned the scoreboard completely off and the noise stopped.
Both teams remained on the court during the delay. Officials rolled out the warm-up basketballs and players stayed loose by shooting baskets.
More: Iowa vs Illinois live score updates: March Madness bracket update, how to watch
The Houston Rockets' regular in-house crew is operating the game clock, scoreboard and shot clock for NCAA regional games. The Rockets installed their state-of-the-art scoreboard this fall ahead of the 2025-26 NBA season.
According to the TBS broadcast, the game was delayed for 11 minutes, long enough to prompt a brief warm-up period for both teams.
Play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan, as he typically does with strange happenings during games, provided viewers with fun commentary during the stoppage:
- "If you can't tell and you can't hear, we have a horn issue and it's stuck. And there's nothing worse than getting your horn stuck," Harlan said. "...What in the world is going on?"
- "Surely there's a way to unplug this. Surely there's a horn expert somewhere in this building!"
- "Cover your ears, hide your eyes! The horn will not shut off."
Game officials at the scorer's table used a canned air horn for the remainder of the first half.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa vs Illinois Elite 8 game delayed by horn that wouldn't turn off
Continue reading...
