Rush Onto The Court ...

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Raymond

You answer it correctly and then bring it up with the appropriate organization. I'm more concerned with proper interpretation so plays are handled correctly on the court. You often seem more concerned with getting points on a test.

I can walk and chew gum at the same time. I'm concerned with both. Many varsity officials can use their "bully pulpit" experience and "bluff" their way through really weird once in a season/decade/career situations. I prefer to do it the right way, by the book, if I possibly can.

A few decades ago, a former local varsity colleague of mine, a good official, moved to different part of Connecticut. After a one point game, while he and his partner were off the visual confines of the court for mere seconds, not even getting a chance to sit down in the looker room, they were informed (in the locker room) by the site director that there was an error with the final score. He and his partner came back onto to the court, decided the game should have gone into overtime, and played overtime which ended up reversing the outcome of the game.

This error on the part of the officials (not the official scorebook error, that was a mere afterthought) made all the newspapers in Connecticut. It was not a good look. I'm not sure if he didn't know the rule (he was a smart guy, a renowned attorney), or if the officials just decided that it was the "fair" thing to do?

While I do my utter best to understand the "bread and butter" rules that happen all the time in our games (block/charge, screens, advantage/disadvantage, etc.) and have an impact on every single game we officiate, I also try to understand the really weird once in a season/decade/career situations, like the odd things that often show up only on written exams.