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Twice this year I have sensed a momentum swing in games that i believe were as a result of fouls that I have called. Both times they were on technical fouls. In the first instance I called a foul on player B1. A was in the double bonus. When I went to report the foul the head coach for B said, "you can call that sh*t in the parking lot" I immediately T'd him. A1 made all 4 free throws and A got the ball out the division line. A then scored on that possession, leading to a 6 pt. swing. Prior to that, team B was winning the game handily. The T seemed to take the wind out of B's sails and they ended up losing by 5. Other than the T, my partner and I didn't call it any differently from start to finish.
The second instance was last Saturday in a girl's varsity game. Team B got a T at the start of the 4th quarter for having only 4 players return to the court. It wasn't any big deal and the coach for B did not complain at all. The T somehow fired team A up in the 4th quarter. Prior to that, team A was not playing well and it looked if they were going to lose. In that game also, I feel that my partner and I called the game consistently from start to finish.
I do not like to change the way I officiate in a game but there are times when it's necessary. If things get heated between opposing players, then I will tighten up the game considerably but it will go both ways. If I do this, I always try to talk with my partner first.
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