[CoachP]

Originally Posted by Yakivegas

3) Game held in a small gymnasium, with the stands and player's benches no more than 2 feet from the out of bounds line. 2nd OT, score tied with about 5 seconds on the clock. A has the ball in their frontcourt. Their point guard makes a cross court pass to her teammate, but that player had decided to cut to the lane. The ball hits in the vacated spot and bounces towards B's bench. There is not a player close enough to make an attempt at a save. The ball is heading OOB, bouncing directly at B's bench. A seated bench player reflexively/defensively grabs the loose ball just before it strikes her in the head.

There is an immediate whistle, and the official signals a technical against the bench player for what sounded like "interference". Under the league rules, a T is an automatic award of 2 points (they don't shoot the FT).

Is that a reasonable call, and if so, is there anything the bench player could have done to avoid the infraction?

What referee wants a third OT when there is an automatic 2 points on a T??