[JRutledge]

Well I am not a fan of everything that Cowheard says as I would not of anyone in his position. That is what happens when you talk on the radio or TV for hours every single day.

But I think the thought that went into this commentary was spot on. He did not just say the officiating was not bad, he gave examples and broke it down for everyone listening. Talked about the coach's demeanor, the missing of shots and the role of the official. I think the main thing I liked was he said basically, "The officials are not there to set the pace of the game, they are there to officiate the game." I think that is often the criticism we have about calling the game because if the game is choppy, we get blamed as if we are the one making or taking shots and throwing the ball away. Even on the held ball situation near the end of the game, it was the play that allowed that to happen, not the officiating. It was certainly one of the big misses of the game, but not a game changer. And I like how he also talked about the "air ball" miss on the shot that went the other way in favor of Gonzaga and how Gonzaga hit a 3 point shot afterwards. Often as officials we do not look at this in the same detail. I felt the crew looked great the first half as there were not as many whistles to come by. But the second half was worse as there was a lot more missed shots and loose balls on the floor. You cannot make chicken salad out of chicken shit, which this game was. They could have called 20 more fouls in many cases as every possession had some contact and everything was contested. There were 4 three point shooting fouls I recall in the first half alone and I might go 50 games and not have that many in any game I officiate or watch.

Peace