Foul! Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome blasts officials after whistle-happy crew calls 53 fouls

CLEVELAND (AP) - Once the whistles stopped blowing, Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome cried foul.

Upset with an inordinate number of personals called during Cleveland’s 133-129 overtime win against Portland on Sunday, Jerome didn’t hold back in criticizing the officiating crew - zeroing in on referee Natalie Sago.

"I thought the refs were really bad tonight, especially Natalie (Sago), she was really bad," Jerome said. “Stuff like that happens. They kind of lose control of the game, and you just got to keep your head. I thought that first half was ridiculous. Third quarter was horrendous.

“You just got to keep your head and keep playing."

The teams were called for a combined 53 fouls and the Trail Blazers and Cavs shot 70 free throws - 35 apiece - in a game that never found any flow.

Jerome faces a likely fine from the NBA for his postgame remarks after the Cavs improved to 50-10 by rallying from an 18-point deficit to push past the scrappy Blazers.

Jerome, who finished with 25 points, six assists and a career-high six steals, was issued a technical foul for arguing his case. He wasn’t the only one upset with the calls.

"The game was so choppy,” said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson. “I'll have to go back and look at the film. We have great referees in this league. I just thought it wasn't a great spectacle for the fans or for the media, or for us as coaches. It would just seem like it was constant stoppage. I'll just leave it at that."

Cleveland’s crowd didn’t hold back in their disgust at the officiating crew, booing throughout the slogfest. Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley fouled out, as did Blazers rookie center Donovan Clingan, who picked up six fouls in just 11 minutes.