Michigan guard Nimari Burnett called for controversial cylinder foul in first half vs. Saint Louis

In a tighter-than-expected first half between No. 1 seed Michigan and No. 9 seed Saint Louis, Wolverines guard Nimari Burnett was called for a cylinder foul against Billikens forward Paul Otieno. Otieno appears to hit Burnett with an elbow during the play, which could have been a Flagrant foul against Saint Louis.

Instead, the Billikens got the call and went to the line. Otieno missed the front end of the one and one, to which the commentary team on CBS, Brian Anderson and Jim Jackson, joked that the “ball don’t lie.” Rules analyst Gene Steratore disagreed with the ruling.

“Interesting fellas, I’d say I disagree,” Steratore said. “He’s defending from the side and from the side, I don’t have to give him that freedom of movement space. I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with that.”

This was called an offensive foul on Saint Louis in real time.

After a review, the call was reversed to a cylinder foul on Michigan’s Nimari Burnett.

Was this the right call?pic.twitter.com/i3X6mpHyPk

— Jamie Shaw (@JamieShaw5) March 21, 2026

The NCAA defines a player’s cylinder as an imaginary boundary that surrounds the player, extending from the floor to as far as the player can jump with their arm or body. The diameter covers the length of a players arms bent at the elbow. A cylinder varies according to the size of the player. Any invasion of an opposing player within this imaginary cylinder is considered a cylinder foul.

Steratore further explained his reasoning for disagreeing with the call after review. He believed the foul should have been against Otieno.

“When we talk about cylinder now, if you watch where Burnett is — if you defend from the side or from the back, we don’t have that space for freedom of movement,” Steratore said. “So he’s good cylinder-wise. I don’t like the speed (of Otieno’s elbow). I don’t like the words excessive right now, but I think they apply. I think he’s moving that a little more than normal.

“The only thing he has in his advantage right now is it’s more of a shoulder, upper bicep and not a legitimate kind of elbow. But I still think there’s excessive in there.”

Despite the call going against Michigan, the No. 1 seed leads Saint Louis 48-39 at halftime. The winner punches its ticket to the Sweet 16.