Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark Padgett
For a few years, I've worked a MS tournament called the President's Day Tournament here in the Portland area. Boys teams from around the country come in to play. This year, there's over 350 games in three days. I wasn't aware of it until I got to one of the 20 gym floors being used yesterday but they expanded the teams to include 3rd and 4th graders! Yeah, that's right, 3rd grade traveling teams!
I was assigned a game at this level because I have experience training HS kids to work that level in our local rec league. Big difference, however. During the game, the coaches spent almost all their time yelling at the top of their lungs at their kids. The rest of the time, they were yelling at me and my partner. It was disgusting.
I T'd up the coach from Seattle (the other team was from Eugene). One of his players fouled out (I think it was his son) and when I went over to inform him of this, he said, "That wouldn't be the case if you and your partner knew what the he77 you were doing out there". WHACK!
Oh yeah - his team lost by 15. Games are 14 minute stop time halves at that level in this tourney.
More oh yeah - the spectators were worse than the coaches.
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Central Ohio Travel Tourney this weekend through next (not on 20 courts, but double digit courts in total). First game was a 4th grade girls game. I needed treatment from the trainer after the game for overuse of both thumbs (about 50 held balls in the 24 minute regular clock game). Fans were "typical" entry level travel fans -- clueless about the rules of basketball, but more than happy to yell and let everyone know that fact.
During the first half of the first game, I report an obvious foul to the table. As I turn back to the court, I hear a voice that I have heard several times now yell out, "it's OK Jenny, you have to play through the bad calls that these officials are making." Might have been OK, other than the fact that the voice was that of the OFFICIAL SCORER!!! I told him if I heard one more comment, he was done. He was quiet the rest of the half and looked like a completely different guy in the second half -- much shorter, much balder and about 20 pounds heavier
Original scorer was spotted on the PARENTS side of the court in the second half.
After the game, a parent came over to us and announced, "That was BY FAR the best officiated game our girls have had ALL YEAR. By the way, my daughter played for the team that lost (same team as the official scorer)."
Many of these kids will end up playing high school basketball some day. It is almost as enjoyable seeing the parents improve their knowledge as it is to see the players improve their skills.