Erik Spoelstra is widely hailed as one of the best coaches in the entire NBA. The two-time champion led the Jimmy Butler-led Miami Heat to three of the last four Eastern Conference Finals.

The veteran coach did not have his finest showing on Tuesday, though. His team allowed the hosting Detroit Pistons to tie the game at 121-121 on a backdoor lob to Jarren Duren with 1.8 seconds left in overtime. Detroit was playing shorthanded after losing stater Tim Hardaway Jr. to injury earlier in the game.

Spoelstra then tried to call a timeout he didn’t have, triggering a technical foul and earning the Pistons a free throw. Malik Beasley calmly sank the gift and handed the struggling Heat their sixth loss in 10 games to start the year.

“Oh no! Oh no!” cried Heat play-by-play announcer Eric Reid. “The referee is saying that Coach Spo has called a timeout. That’s a technical foul as the Heat are out of timeouts!”

The technical foul also meant the Pistons could retain possession. Beasley was fouled with just milliseconds on the clock and converted one of two free throws to clinch the 123-121 win.

In his postgame press conference, Spoelstra was effusive in his praise of Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff for his alley-oop play call.

Then, the Heat coach took responsibility for the time-out call. “I just made a serious mental error there at the end,” he admitted. “That’s on me. I feel horrible about it. There’s no excuse for that, I’m 17 years in.”

“We had talked about it in the huddle. I knew we didn’t have anything. I just got emotional and reactive.”

Former NBA veteran and Detroit resident Jalen Rose was on hand for Tuesday’s game. He was part of a similar incident.

His Michigan teammate Chris Webber attempted to call a timeout during the 1993 NCAA Championship game against UNC. The Tarheels were awarded a technical free throw as Rose’s team lost the title.

Beasley scored 21 points off the bench, connecting on five three-pointers. The 2016 first-round pick was brought in to help the Pistons’ poor floor spacing. The 5-7 Pistons visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.

Heat guard Tyler Herro poured in 40 points – one less than his career high – as he connected on 14 of his 27 field goals. The 4-6 Heat visit the Indiana Pacers on Friday.