12-22-15
First assignment, Freshman/JV girls doubleheader. Very nervous going in, due to my limited gym time in the scrimmages (see OP!), and my absence of basketball officiating at any level. Spent the whole weekend studying signals and positioning. Emailed my partner a week ahead of time, letting him know this was my first game, and asking him what he would expect from me. No response. Finally he called me the morning of the game, to reassure me that it would be fine, not to worry, etc. . .so that made me feel a little better.
Before the game we went over some basic things, and he did a great job putting me at ease.
Still a bit nervous at tip-off, and there were several moments during the first half, as lead, where I really doubted if I could do this. Everything was a blur. Shot would go up, and the empty lane was suddenly filled with bodies, bumping into each other. Worst moment was after many missed shots in a row from close range (Freshman girls!), each rebound got more physical, then all of a sudden, two players fell to the floor, roll out of bounds, with each girl holding the ball. Held ball? Travel? OOB? Coaches screaming for a foul. I called held ball, but looking back on it, I should have called a foul earlier, before the play got out of hand.
Began to wonder if I should have started with younger kids rec, instead of High School ball. I was struggling with basic OOB calls!
Halftime finally came, and my partner said I was doing fine, and offered some tips. He was really great to work with. Whenever I would be out of position, he would very discreetly re-direct me, like on a free throw.
2nd half I felt a little more confident, and I had my first “Aha!!” moment. I was lead, I called a block. Defender clearly displaced the ball-handler with her body. It happened right in front of me. Next time down the other side, coach yelled “How was that a foul, her arms were straight up!” She was 60 feet away, I was right there. I just had enough time to tell her “with her body”, and moved on. So my first interaction with a coach gave me confidence that hey, I might actually be able to do this!
2nd game I felt a little more confident, being JV, players were a bit more skilled, so it seemed easier. Despite me feeling better, I still had to rely 100% on my partner for the arrow, which did not look good, since I called several held balls, then had to look at him (Note to self – fix this ASAP!), and I made one glaring rookie mistake. Called a foul on white, but for some reason told my partner “white ball”. Went to report, foul on white. The whole gym is wondering why my partner is getting ready to administer a throw-in for white, if the foul was on white. I got together with my partner and we straightened it out. Broke one of the cardinal rules I heard from many of you, after blowing the whistle. . . .SLOW DOWN!!
2nd game ended, partner again said I did fine, and that I would be fine going forward. In the locker room to my surprise were one of my fellow cadets, who was there just to watch me, and one of my cadet instructors, who was doing the varsity game. My fellow cadet said I did a great job (probably just being polite), and my instructor gave me several things to work on.
So that night I drove home happy and relieved, knowing that I made it through my first two games, I felt that I could really do this, I enjoyed it, and that I know I will always be a work-in-progress, but of all the tips I received, none seemed insurmountable.
This was just before the Christmas break, with my next game (another doubleheader at the same gym) in 2 weeks. Gave me plenty of time to study, practice mechanics, and prepare. And just when things seemed to be going well. . .my second experience was NOTHING like my first.
1-5-16
I completely understand that the fans, players, and coaches are all against us, and that we have to stick together, and never badmouth another official. And especially me, who is low man on the totem pole. So I am certainly not looking to throw anybody under the bus. So what follows below is just my account of my second time officiating. I am not complaining, just being a journalist. Not at all looking to criticize, just acting as a reporter, with a first-hand account.
At the end of this doubleheader, I heard one of the coaches say it was the worst reffed game he has ever seen in his whole career. I was concerned that somehow it would get back to me, and since I am the rookie, it must have been my fault.
Here is what happened. I emailed my partner a week ahead, explaining that I am new, asking him what he expects of me, etc… no response. I arrive at the school at 3:00 (4:00 game), and am dressed and ready to go at 3:15. He arrives in the locker room at 3:50. So I ask him if he got my email (he did), and start to ask him questions about switching on fouls, simultaneous whistles, etc….and the first words out of his mouth were about Trump and Hillary and Ted Cruz, etc…
So in the two games (boys), it was definitely faster than the girls games I had, but I kept up, didn’t have any major objections to any of my calls, made a typical silly rookie mistake “White, 5,…sorry, Red, 5…”, but thought I did OK.
One time on a throw-in, I bounced the ball to the in-bounder, who immediately dropped the ball, it bounced off his knee, and rolled onto the court. Players quickly went to play the ball. I blow my whistle and say we are re-administering the throw-in. Coach (right near me) asks why? I say “He fumbled my pass”. Several people start laughing “He FUMBLED the pass? I never heard of that!” But I knew I was right. So little by little I am gaining confidence. And I called my first two player-control fouls, with no protests.
Here are some of the things that happened that I didn’t expect:
At half-time, my partner said he was very close to over-ruling one of my player-control fouls. I asked why, he said because the defender was leaning back. I said he had established legal guarding position, and was just bracing for impact, which is allowed. He said if the defender is leaning back, you have to call a block.
Later he called a team-control foul, then began to administer free throws. I told him that we never shoot free throws on team-control fouls. Before the game he told me when the trail calls a foul, just stay at the table, and don’t switch. During the game, as lead, he reported all of his fouls from under the basket, and we didn’t switch.
Many times he over-ruled my call. Now as a rookie I am more than willing to defer to a more experienced partner, but most of the time it just didn’t look good, and I could tell the coaches were getting annoyed. For example, I was lead, two players fighting for the ball right in front of me near the end line. I call a held ball. No protest from anybody. Partner comes running in from the division line, to call a foul just before the held ball. With both players facing me. He had no view of the ball.
I know I will have good partners and some not so good, and that sometimes it will be me that is “not so good”. But since it was just my second day officiating, I was really concerned that the coach would file a report.
1-9-16
So I approached my next game with some trepidation, the events of a few days ago fresh in my mind. One Boys JV game on a Saturday morning, with a fellow rookie official. We did speak with each other beforehand. To confirm the notion that you never know what to expect, during the pregame coaches meeting, one of the coaches said to me “Aren’t you Kevin’s Dad?” We were 20 miles from home. Turns out he was my son’s freshman coach, moving up the ranks, at a different school.
Once again, I ignored/forgot advice on this board, at my peril. I called a foul 5 seconds into the game, but completely went blank on which team was on offense, and which direction each team was going. (one of you said to make sure you are 100% mentally ready at tip-off – seems obvious, but still. . . .).
I had to huddle with my partner, who was able to rescue me and straighten it out. Very embarrassing for me. I had one more bad moment. Fast break leaves the big man behind, but a few seconds later he receives a long pass, and he is all alone, about 15 feet from the basket. He caught the pass with both feet on the floor, took two steps, then up for the layup. I didn’t call anything, nobody complained, but I had a nagging suspicion that it was a travel. I didn’t even have to look it up; driving home I replayed it in my head, and cursed out loud in the car when I realized it was a travel. Won’t miss that one again!
Probably the best advice I received from you guys was to really concentrate on one thing to work on each game. For this game I chose the arrow, which I had been struggling with. Once again this Board proved invaluable. I searched through all previous threads, about the pros and cons of switching whistles in your pockets, rubber bands (office supply, AND orthodontic!), whistle switches, etc. . . I am still too inexperienced to just remember it in my head (maybe someday), so I decided to try somebody’s suggestion, using the button in your back pocket. Easy to switch without anybody noticing. My plan was that “open” has 4 letters, so it was blue vs. white, an open pocket meant blue had the arrow, since blue has 4 letters. Ingenious!! (LOL). Worked like a charm, and I was able to confidently call direction immediately after my held ball calls, and was able to confirm with partner before each Q what direction we were going, instead of having nothing to offer. Next game I got into a little panic, when it was red vs. white, and even though both schools consisted of two words, none of those words had 4 letters! Luckily at the last second I noticed the word “Prep” on one team’s uniforms. Driving home after that game, I realized the flaw in my system, and came up with the idea to equate “open” with “home”. Much easier, and foolproof!! Well. . . not 100% foolproof. . .what about “away” LOL!!!! Next day I convinced myself that “open” equals “home”, since they both have the long “o” sound.
I did happen to remember some other advice, “follow the shooter back to the floor”. As trail, a 3-pt attempt in front of me, kept my eye on the shooter, who was fouled by his defender just as he retouched the floor. Fairly significant displacement. Shot was good, I called the foul. Coach and fans were incredulous, and now I understand why. They, just like me in my “fan days”, were watching the ball. After the ball went in, their attention turned to my whistle, and the shooter and defender, who were now clearly separated. Only I had witnessed the foul. A strange feeling came over me. I felt like I was let in on a great big secret, that I had seen something no one else was privy to. It was all starting to click. . . .
1-12-16
Next game, JV boys, two Catholic schools, big rivalry, one school’s football team is nationally ranked every year. So I expected an intense game, and it was, with plenty of action above the rim. What I didn’t expect was a packed gym, since it was JV. I still can’t believe that I got assigned to a game like that, as such a rookie, but I loved it!
Another very helpful partner, who kept me calm and grounded. Coach respectfully questioned two of my player-control fouls “That’s not a charge”. Of course if I had time I would have asked him about “Legal Guarding Position”, and all the things a defender can legally do once he has established LGP. But that fictional conversation was never able to take place!
Same coach (home) was up by 45 with one minute to go, still running fast breaks up to that point. Finally, with 40 seconds to go, he yells to his team to not shoot, because “we don’t need it”. I guess they “needed it” before then?!
Besides the charge comment, we had no complaints from any fans, players, or coaches. And afterwards, my partner said “You looked like you knew what the f--- you were doing out there!”. A very enjoyable game, which helped to up my confidence meter one small notch! But my up and down season would continue. . .
1-14-16
Well, it was bound to happen eventually. . .my first “kicked call”. I am assuming that phrase refers to when you mess up a rule, not a judgment call. And you guys are SO RIGHT, I will never forget that rule again!
Girls JV/Freshman doubleheader, very sloppy games, total opposite of my previous game. Another great partner, who put me at ease right away, and offered excellent constructive criticism throughout. Still forgetting to check the table for subs on every dead ball, I really need to work on that.
One time on a backcourt throw-in after OOB, the girl took several steps onto the court, then passed the ball. There were no defenders nearby. I couldn’t ignore that, so I called the violation. I know no advantage was gained, but I felt it was a teachable moment. Nobody complained, and her teammate reminded her that she must stay out-of-bounds.
At halftime one coach said to me “Please watch #3, she often pushes off to get position”. I just said OK, then thought to myself that if I DID call that, he would think that he was able to influence me. So I decided to try to keep an eye on it, but only call it if it was egregious. I did miss an OOB call, not seeing the ball deflect off a player’s foot at the last second, which prompted this comment from a nearby fan “Come on, ref, even with your glasses, you didn’t see that?!” I just smiled. And then a weird moment during the 2nd game, when 5 police officers show up, and the coaches had to tell them that they were in the wrong place, that they needed to go to the girls bathroom – to attend to a brawl between the two Freshman teams!
So the Freshman game was tied after regulation, and my partner asked me if the game ends in a tie, since it was Freshman. I said no, the game is still governed by NFHS rules, and unless there was a special rule in this conference, then we go to OT. He wasn’t sure how long the OT period was. So, sensing his uncertainty at the whole situation, I remembered very clearly that all extra periods are an extension of the 4th Q. So I instructed the table that all OT periods were to be 4 minutes, that we are not switching baskets, and that the team foul counts carry over.
And then, knowing that the OT is an extension of the 4th Q, I told my partner that we start the OT with the arrow. It was a few days later that I decided to double check that, and sadly, I saw the rule that says all extra periods start with a jump ball! And of course, the game went to double OT!! So I emailed my partner to apologize for getting that wrong, he appreciated it.
1-16-16
I have been told to accept all games, since I am just starting out, and I totally agree, so my next assignment was three 4th grade girls rec games. I coached all my kids at that level, so I kind of knew what to expect. But the level of play was way worse than I recall. The “gym” (doubles as the cafeteria) was so small that for backcourt violations, they use the foul line in the backcourt. Before the game I asked the coaches how strict did they want us to call travels and double dribbles. They said to ignore a few extra steps, but if the kid is running with the ball, then call it. That’s a really tough distinction to make, we ended up not calling ANY travels (would have been every possession), and nobody cared. There were so many local rules I had to watch for. I agree with those rules at that level, but it was just very different than what I was used to (no zone defense, no double-teaming, no keeping track of fouls, no defense in the backcourt, no stealing the ball above the foul line, etc….). Every single issue and coach complaint arose from one of those local rules.
Afterwards, in the parking lot in my car, I just sat there for a few moments, and did a mental “Ctrl Alt Del”, to try to wipe my memory of what I had just witnessed.
One good thing was that my partner was a HS kid with very little experience. So it gave me a chance to take charge, and teach her along the way. I even had to show a bewildered parent how to use the clock! So I got to work on my OOB calls and keeping track of the arrow, was able to mentor a HS kid (she wants to play D1 Field Hockey, I asked her if she was prepared to choose between a social life or getting good grades – my son found that even playing D3 ball was a huge time commitment), and spent an enjoyable morning watching 4th grade kids play ball – it was all good!
1-21-16
Next up was a boys Freshman/JV doubleheader. And I was blessed with the best partner yet, which is saying a lot, because most of my partners have been excellent to work with, and very helpful. He was a few years older than me (I am 54), and immediately took me under his wing. I knew ahead of time he was a teacher, and also a football coach. He was very careful to make sure we switched on every foul, and to follow every mechanic to the letter of the law, for my benefit. Whenever we even had just a few seconds, he would instruct me on something. It was a free 3-hour class on officiating, and I loved every second of it!
In between games, we had to walk from the old gym to the new gym, and some idiot fan made a nasty remark to my partner – that really got to me, since I knew how hard he was trying to help me.
Of course the game did not pass without one thing or another happening to me. Before the game in the old gym, we walked around, and we saw a lot of equipment suspended from the ceiling – looked like gymnastics stuff, and some of it was quite low. Not just near the baskets, but all over the court. I told my partner how shocked I was just a few months before, when I watched my daughter in her first Freshman volleyball game, how balls that hit the ceiling (and anything else up there) were in play – I couldn’t believe it! (Little did I know what was about to transpire. . . . )
1st Q, I am T, kid shoots a 3 right in front of me, closely guarded. I follow him back to the floor like I was told, and I see the ball out of the corner of my eye fly out of bounds. I did not see what caused it, so I broke a cardinal rule, and guessed that it had to be the defender. . .what else could have caused that? After I called it, the defender politely told me that he never touched it. It was then that I realized, to my horror, that the ball must have struck that low-hanging equipment! Which explained why the ball flew OOB at a fairly high level. It had looked weird, but at the time I just assumed the kid knocked it out. I’m guessing the moral of this story is that I was too close to the shooter to see the big picture.
The other bad thing I did was as L, drive to the basket, crash, I called the foul, but for a split-second did not know if I had a block or a charge. When I did decide a second later, I felt I was influenced by the coach. Man, that was an awful feeling, which I hope to never have to experience again!
Most of my partner’s comments had to do with me needing to be more forceful and confident with my calls. He said I did better in the 2nd game. I loved this guy so much that I am actually going to send him a thank you card, by snail mail!
One weird thing that happened is that the varsity game was also at 4:00, so all 5 officials were in the locker room before and after our 4:00 games. When the varsity officials came in after their game, they were not happy. Evidently, the fans were all over them, especially one guy in the front row. The guy wouldn’t stop, and was using profanity. Finally one of the officials went to “game management” to have the fan removed. Well, it turns out that “game management” was just a young guy on his cell phone. He refused to do anything. So the official ejected the fan himself!
1-28-16
Next games, a week later, Freshman/JV boys doubleheader, same gym. I was much more aware of the low-hanging equipment, and sure enough, 1st Q, visiting team shoots a 3, grazes part of a climbing rope/net, but clearly hit it, I call it. Visiting coach not happy at all, but he complained to Home coach, not me, kind of like “What kind of gym is this, is that a local rule, etc…” Home coach just said it’s the same for both teams. Believe it or not, the game ended when a potential game tying 3 pointer at the buzzer (by Home!) actually got stuck in the suspended climbing rope, and never came down!
Both games came down to the final shot. In my first few games, I was grateful that they were blowouts, because I was too nervous to have to officiate an end-game situation where my call might make the difference. This time, I embraced it! First few times out, I would constantly look at the clock, praying for the quarter to end, feeling completely overwhelmed. This time, both games, it was more like “Wow, final minute already?”
The things that are automatic for all of you, that were such a struggle for me at first, are becoming more natural. Like checking the table for subs on every dead ball, knowing the arrow, and general positioning. Now I need to work on more advanced things, like as L, I know I am not supposed to ball watch outside of my area, but I still need to keep an eye on the ball, in case of an OOB on my line but outside of my PCA.
And for the first time, I actually did some “proactive” officiating. 1st Q, player comes over to throw the ball in, when it was the other team’s throw-in. 2nd Q, he did it again. Me, being naïve, thought nothing of it, until he did it again just before half time, on a Time Out! So at halftime I realized he was doing it on purpose, to try to catch an unsuspecting official – he must have known that once a throw-in ends, it’s too late to fix if it was for the wrong team. So before the 2nd half starts, I called him over, told him (politely) not to do that again. He respectfully apologized, and said he wouldn’t. And he didn’t. Even though I didn’t use the words “warning” or “technical”, I felt that I had issued him a warning, and that if he did it again, I would call a T.
And before both games, I had to tell the visiting coach that half of his players had their waistbands flipped down, that had to be fixed. We had just received an email recently about that. Both coaches were not happy, complaining that the uniforms didn’t fit otherwise, etc….. But they complied.
Same home coach from a week before, complained a lot last week, this time, nothing. Had I actually improved that much in one week? Nah. . .even though I felt way more confident, still made a bad rookie mistake. I am new T, full-court press, I call a foul on the defense, then the kid complained to me that he didn’t foul, I showed my partner where the throw-in spot was, but when I went to report, I forgot who the foul was on. They are about to do the throw-in, and the table asked me wasn’t that a foul? I apologized, and reported a number of who I thought was involved in the play. I was only about 50% sure – felt awful about that.
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So that brings me to January 29. Tomorrow I have 3 rec games, but it’s 6th thru 8th grade, with none of those 4th grade local rules!! LOL
Thanks to all who actually read all of this to the end!!