I had a very, very, very similar experience early in my first year. Called a foul on the guy in the block on a foul shot for pushing off. Stupid play, good call. Coach goes off at me and I handle it very badly. Things with him go from bad to worse and soon he earns his first T, and keeps challenging me for his second.
It was a semi-final game in a valley-wide championship tournament and I had been looking forward to the assignment. It ruined my whole night. It ruined my whole week. It made me want to hang it up.
Luckily I had some other games scheduled in another league and I didn't want to turn them back. Got back in the saddle (no pun intended) and had a good experience the next assignment. I haven't looked back since.
Funny enough, it was just about that time in my career that I found this board.
I have to agree with what everybody has said. Deal with the coaches professionally. Get away after the first T. And don't let it get you down. All the things I didn't do that night either.
The good news is that you've got a lot of really fun experiences ahead of you. Keep going. Work hard. It's amazing how much you can improve in just one year and how genuinely satisfying that is! One year on, I can hardly remember the worthless b@stard that made me want to hang it up. I'll be working that same tournament again this year. I'm betting he won't even be there. However, if he is, and if we have trouble again, I know I'll handle it very differently. And if he needs to leave before the game is over, I won't lose a moments sleep this time.
