[BktBallRef]

UNBELIEVABLE!

Ref chief: Towel T 'horrible call'

3-17-04

By TODD GRAFF, Staff Writer
The News & Record

GREENSBORO -- The supervisor of ACC basketball officials said Tuesday that the technical foul charged to N.C. State's bench in Saturday's ACC Tournament semifinal loss to Maryland was a "horrible call" and that the incident was one of the reasons Larry Rose didn't work the tournament final.

Rose, the lead official for the game, called a technical foul on N.C. State with 14:56 remaining because a manager was on the floor wiping up moisture during the course of play.

"It was a horrible call," said ACC associate commissioner Fred Barakat, who coordinates the league's officials. "That's why he went home.

"Technically speaking, the call was correct. But, as I told him, on the stage we're on, with ESPN and so on, you have to use some common sense. There's no reason to punish a team because a team manager is on the court wiping up a puddle. If (Maryland coach) Gary (Williams) didn't like it, I'd say we should do the same thing for him."

Barakat said he would need to speak further with Rose before making a decision on any additional penalty.

"I think he got a pretty big punishment" by not working the final, Barakat said.

Karl Hess worked the final for the fourth time, while Reggie Cofer and Jamie Luckie each worked their first ACC final.

Rose, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday, is one of the league's most respected officials. He has worked nine ACC Tournament title games -- tied for second behind Lenny Wirtz' 13 on the all-time list. He has worked four Final Fours (1993, '98, '99 and 2003). He was named the Naismith Men's Official of the Year in 2002. He also is pictured in the ACC media guide with the list of ACC title game officials.

"According to the rule, the guy's right," Barakat said. "He did not make a mistake on the rule. So now I take it further than the rule. I told him, 'With 20 years experience, I could expect that out of (a less experienced official), but not you.' "

Rose's call came with State's 19-point halftime lead down to 53-43 and the teams coming out of a television timeout. Because N.C. State brings chairs onto the floor to conduct its timeouts, a team manager was wiping up the moisture left behind.

Rose had warned State coach Herb Sendek about similar delays "several times," according to Barakat, and called N.C. State for a violation of NCAA Rule 10-11, which comes under the heading of Bench Restrictions.

"They were warned during the course of the game that their chairs were out there too long and that they were wiping up the floor too long," Barakat said. "Larry had warned them a couple times, and I think Larry got a short trigger."

Maryland turned it into a four-point possession with Chris McCray hitting two free throws and John Gilchrist scoring on a layup. The possession led to a 10-0 run and certainly played a part in Maryland's 85-82 victory.

"They were on the rocks; it didn't help," Barakat said. "It took the wind out of their sails. They were making a run back. After they had thrown the ball all over the place, they had just started to regain their composure and whack, that came."

Asked whether he thought, given the situation and nature of the violation, it was one of the strangest calls he's seen, Barakat said, "Yeah. It was totally out of context."

Barakat said he spoke with Sendek about the call, although that didn't constitute an official apology from the conference. Sendek declined to comment on the incident Tuesday.

"He appreciated the call," Barakat said. "It was very positive. But there was nothing he could do about it."