[OverAndBack]

Thanks for everybody's encouragement and advice to this point. I have several questions that some of you will probably roll your eyes at, but I'm new at this, and I'll put them in one thread to inconvenience the fewest people.

Off-the-court questions[list=1][*]I just received my official card and patches from my state association. Two patches - is that one to keep and one to share, or one for shirt and one for jacket, or two for shirts in case you have two shirts?[*]Included in all the paperwork was an order form for business cards with the state association logo that would identify me as a LICENSED OFFICIAL with my ID number, sport, name, address, phone, etc. $48.00 for 100, $53.25 for 200, $63.75 for 500. Does anybody actually get these things, or am I risking being labelled an obvious newbie geek by getting them? And does that seem expensive? [/list=1]

On-the-court questions[list=1][*]I've been having trouble with over-and-back calls here in the early going. I've blown a couple. Anyone have any tips for the trail when it's likely that you're going to see some close guarding near the halfway line, which could result in situations where the ball gets tipped or thrown into the backcourt? Anything I can do with positioning or where to look or mental notes or anything?[*]On three seconds - this weekend, Team A would come down and set up on offense, with their center right at the free throw line, with his back to the basket and his heels across the free throw line in the paint. He would camp there and hardly move - is this three seconds? I asked my partner (very experienced) who said the three-second area for purposes of that rule doesn't start until farther down in the key. I'm confused about that one, so any help there would be appreciated.[*]I have been doing a lot of girls' games in grades 5-8 and they feature a lot (a LOT) of jump ball situations, where two players get a hold of the ball and tie it up. How long do you wait on that, is it different for different levels, is this something that happens more at lower levels or are my partners and I just too quick to whistle or too slow to let it play out?[*]One thing I've also seen a lot of is a player going to the floor to get a loose ball. They're lying on the floor with the ball. Usually they'll try to get it to a teammate, but there's an inevitable piling on and movement. At what point is it a travel, at what point do you let it go, at what point is it a foul, and are there any hard and fast rules (or rules of thumb) in that situation? I thought if they roll away from a defender, it's a travel. If they stand up, it's a travel. What other situations do you look for, and how do you call it? [/list=1]

Again, sorry for the newbieness of the questions. Thanks for the help. One thing I've noticed so far in the games I've worked is that my more-experienced partners have all been tremendously helpful and accomodating with my inexperience.