You have a $7\times 7$ board divided into $49$ boxes. Mateo places a coin in a box. a) Prove that Mateo can place the coin so that it is impossible for Emi to completely cover the $48$ remaining squares, without gaps or overlaps, using $15$ $3\times1$ rectangles and a cubit of three squares, like those in the figure. b) Prove that no matter which square Mateo places the coin in, Emi will always be able to cover the 48 remaining squares using $14$ $3\times1$ rectangles and two cubits of three squares.
Problem
Source: 2018 Argentina OMA Finals L3 p3
Tags: geometry, combinatorics, combinatorial geometry, tiles, Tiling