Safety
 

Yesterday, there was a 4-game rivalry series between two local schools--girls jv, girls varsity, boys varsity, then finally, boys jv. For the two varsity games, the gym was packed to capacity. I was there solely as a spectator, not an official.

Apparently, because of the crowd, condensation formed on the ceiling during the third game (boys varsity) and dripped steadily onto the floor right underneath one basket. The two ADs sat on the bleachers under the basket, armed with towels, and did a quick mop-up every time--every time!--the ball went the other way. I don't know if the three varsity officials or the two refs for the final game (boys jv) expressed any doubt about the wisdom of playing under potentially dangerous conditions, but all four games were played, and although there were several slips, no one was injured.

Because of the risk, I'm not sure I would have played the final game; I would have suggested rescheduling it.

Anyone ever deal with this kind of safety-related dilemma? If so, how was the problem handled?

Sure. And, i fit can be dealt with, as in this instance, it really isn't an issue.

With several players slipping, I'm not sure the solution was entirely satisfactory.

In any event, I was not asking opinions about how this situation was handled. Rather, I was really asking if anyone has gotten to a game and found an unsafe situation that could not really be remedied.

I remember a D1 game with the University of Virginia playing someone at the Richmond Coliseum. The basketball court was laid down over the ice hockey rink. It was a warm, and unusually humid winter day. They had all the doors open.
Well the humidity and the cold floor did not mix well. After seeing numerous players slip and slide they called the game in the first half. Forget about state rivalry game or the television contracts, the player safety always should come first.

IIRC it was a Big ten/ACC Challenge game and UVA was playing Michigan St and it as an ESPN televised game back in 2001

https://www.richmond.com/sports/coll...9bb30f31a.html

Yes, about five years ago the home team had several fans from the student section imitate Lebron James and toss baby powder in the air before the contest.

The powder got into the air ducts and made the court so slick that we couldn’t play. Fortunately, the visiting school was only a mile away and we were able to shift the game to that location and play that evening. There was no possible way to play at the home school.

I recall some hockey/ice situation as well a few years ago. It was an NBA game and the contest was cancelled due to excessive condensation. I’ll try to look it up.

Here is the article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.fa15180b8d2f

I don't know if anyone questioned playing on the night I observed, but I'm sure there was pressure to get the games in, especially as it was a big rivalry night. And we do not have a league commissioner, who could be called for a decision.

If I were one of the officials, I would probably have felt compelled to go along, but with a caveat: "The first time a kid goes down, we stop the game."

John Doe Versus Richard Roe ...
 

Hopefully that kid's father isn't an attorney.

I had a different, yet similar situation. My assigner had me be on call yesterday to do a girls' varsity game following the JV boys game I was assigned to. The game was cancelled and unconcerned multiple times within 2 days, including on the day of the game, so my assigner was unable to provide additional officials. My assigner had advised me to leave, so I called both coaches together before the game was supposed to start, and told them that the game would not be played, because I cannot officiate alone. The AD called my assigner again, but when my assigner called me back, I told her that I had "zero interest in working a one-person game, especially on short notice". I then undressed and left the school.

I love one-person games, what a great workout!

Hope You're Being Sarcastic
 

Not me. Especially at the upper levels. Just can't cover what's needed to do a good job.

:eek:

:p

We had a somewhat similar situation happen here a couple years ago, but it didn't get into the air ducts, rather just on the court. They had to pull out the floor scrubber and delayed the game by about 30 minutes, and this happened as both teams and officials were lined up for the opening tip.

You've probably warmed up enough by now to realize you forever endeared yourself to said assigner.

Remember this when your schedule goes bye-bye. You could have at least waited while your assigner tried to find replacements.

Questions Unanswered ...
 

We've heard everything that happened except what your assigner told you in the second phone call?

I noticed that the teams were present with only one official present (myself). I then texted the assigner to say that both teams are here, but I am the only official. I got an answer that I should leave. Then, I informed both coaches, and left to the locker room. In the second phone call (when I was in the locker room), the assigner asked me if I had called to ask to stay. I said, no, the home AD made the call to ask if I could work alone. That was when I said the one-liner about zero interest. My assigner said OK, and the call ended shortly afterwards. I then undressed and left the facility.

I do not know if DC has a relevant law like Wisconsin, but I am not physically able to do the jobs of three people at once. This is why I cannot work scholastic games alone. I also will not work scholastic games alone, because I do not want to jeopardize the safety of the players by my inability to see and call what a 2 (or 3)person crew should be able to see and call.

Recreational games may be different, especially if I know that a partner is due to arrive within a few minutes of the start of the game, and the game is a lower-level contest. This is because it is important to keep recreational games on schedule as much as possible, especially for league directors, because they may have limits on the time they can use the gym space.

Didn't Made Any New Friends That Day ...
 

If on two separate occasions your assigner told you not to work the game alone, then there's nothing you could do about it except not work the game.

However, if in the second phone call your assigner asked you to work the game alone and you wiggled out of it, well, that's another story, and you didn't made any new friends that day.

Cannot, as state rule based like in Wisconsin?

Cannot, because your assigner wouldn't allow it?

Or you unilaterally decided you would not?

Hard To Shake ...
 

https://forum.officiating.com/basket...ml#post1027593

ilyazhito: I strongly suggest that you find out what the one person guidelines are for each association/state that you work for.

Walking out with hundreds of ticket buying fans in the stands, a paid table crew, cheerleaders, and two teams of players warming up, one group that may have traveled many miles in a expensive bus, is a "reputation killer" that will be hard to shake (unless you have the full 100% backing of your assigner/state).

Well you better find out. Soon. Like yesterday.

Are you even aware if there is, or isn't, a fee structures in place to accommodate such one person situations (example, 1.5 x fee)? The answer to that might give you a clue if one person games are allowed, or outlawed (Wisconsin).

Take a break from memorizing all the rule sets, on all the levels, in all the states, and countries, and who uses three person, and who uses shot clocks, and figure out what's going on in own own backyard.

The assigner told me both times that I should not work alone. I was in total agreement with that. Even if there was a 1.5x fee for working solo, that only would be relevant if the game was supposed to be done by 2 officials. This was a varsity game, so it would have been assigned 3 officials if it was not repeatedly cancelled and uncancelled within the day before the game and the day of the game.

ilyazhito, I would not blame you for saying no if, after working a jv game, you were expected to also work a varsity game solo.

But did you have a partner on the jv game, and if so, where did he/she go? Was it not possible for the two of you to work the varsity game?

My partner from the JV game had left, because he had family plans. He and his wife were present at the JV game, and both left shortly after it ended. I then called my assigner to ask if they could send other officials (or ask the boys' officials to come early; the boys varsity game was regularly scheduled for later that day and had a normal 3-person crew assigned to it). When I received the advice to leave, I understood that I wouldn't receive reinforcements, and so decided to end the girls varsity game before it started.

Yep had a ceiling drip this Sunday on a few spots on the court. We tried the old mop it up method and it worked for first half but as game went on drips were coming down more frequently. First time a player slipped I stopped the game spoke to my partner and suspended the game. Text sent to assignor and no complaints.

Off The Hook ...
 

That takes you off the hook and puts all the onus on your assigner and the game administrators. It's their problem not yours.

Was working a summer rec league on a non-wooden surface. It was a really humid night (as those of us in the Chicago area know how it can be) and the floor wasn't handling it well. I originally thought it was just a sweat mark, but it quickly became evident that we shouldn't be playing.

When player safety is involved, ALWAYS error on the side of caution. I don't think anyone could fault you for reasonably having the players' best interests in mind.

Agree 100000%

How is what you went on to describe even REMOTELY "similar" to the situation described when this thread was started? Thread hijacks are annoying.

Mine was also a safety-related issue requiring the game to not be played (or affecting gameplay) just like the condensation situation in the OP. Again, I apologize if my hijacking the thread offended anyone. I intended to contribute to this thread with a similar experience from one of my games.

One Is The Loneliest Number That You'll Ever Do (Three Dog Night, 1969) ...
 

You are overvaluing the safety factor of officials. Kids have been safely playing basketball on playgrounds and in gyms with no officials for a hundred years. Games with three officials are probably a little safer than games with two officials. Games with two officials are probably a little safer than games with one official. Games with one official are safer than games with no official. Associations/states have come up with somewhat arbitrary numbers that will allow for games to be played safely. For some areas it's one official. For others it may be two officials. Heck, some states have one person mechanic guidelines in place.

I find it odd that a state that won't allow a game to start with only one official will allow it to continue with one official if the other gets hurt. Are they, or aren't they, admitting that the game can be safely, or not safely, played with one official? Is this a lawsuit waiting to happen if the game is allowed to continue with just one official? There must be reasons in addition to safety why such states would allow such?

It's unsafe to play the first minute with less than two officials, but it's safe to play the remaining thirty-one minutes with just one official? If it was mostly about safety, these states wouldn't allow such to occur.

Are the powers that be in Wisconsin (thirty-one minutes with one) more concerned about player safety than the powers to be in Connecticut (thirty-two minutes with one)?

Do states think that middle school kids can be safe with one, but not varsity high school kids?

The worst injury I ever saw in a basketball game was a compound arm fracture. Middle school game. Blood all over the place. Four officials in that game would not have prevented that injury.

Second worst injury I ever saw in a basketball game was a dislocated elbow. Girls varsity game. I can still hear her screams thirty years later. Four officials in that game would not have prevented that injury.

Or, does the number of officials have more to do with the validity and impact of the game's outcome (in addition to safety)?

In my opinion (and in the opinion of many states) one very high quality official can safely keep control of a varsity game.

I won't say the same thing about the validity and impact of the game's outcome.

Turn It Like Tightening A Valve ...
 

I've been involved with basketball for over fifty years, as a player, coach, fan, parent, and official.

Almost all injuries are a result of wrong place, wrong time, wrong angle, wrong landing, preexisting injury, accidents, bad luck, etc., not because of anything the official did, or didn't do. Players take off balance shots trying to avoid blocked shots, kids jump off balance trying to block shots, kids dive into bleachers trying to save balls heading out of bounds, kids trip over their own feet, kids trip over teammate's feet, kids trip over opponent's feet, and yes, sometimes kids are tripped by opponents, often with a foul being called. Some happened when a player is fouled, almost always with the foul being called by an official, and it's often not a "hard" foul, but an ordinary foul.

One of my players once broke both wrists after being fouled on a shot attempt. Official called an intentional foul. Nothing the officials did, or didn't, do previous to this could have prevented this foul by an aggressive off the bench player late in a blowout game.

How many times each season do we hear coaches say, "Better call some fouls or somebody will get hurt".

Of course that's coach-speak for, "Better call some fouls on the other team or somebody on my team will get hurt", or, "Better call some fouls on the other team so we can get some free throws because we can't make a field goal to save our life", or, "Better call some fouls on the other team so we can get their best player in foul trouble".

I hope that most Forum members wouldn't say to the coach, "Sure coach, glad to oblige, I agree that this game has been called in an unsafe manner and that we need to make this game as safe as we can, I'll be glad to call more fouls". Most officials would simply answer (if the coach was well behaved and deserved an answer) "We'll keep our eyes open coach".

That being said, that's not the same thing as my partner and I getting together and discussing that things seem to have gotten a little "chippy" and that we may want to call the game a little tighter. In fact, here in my little corner of Connecticut, we have an unofficial signal that we use to communicate such, to stay on the same page, stick out your fist and turn it like tightening a valve.

https://image1.slideserve.com/228540...y-loosey-n.jpg