"Timeout!".....whoops

[Danvrapp]

Yowza. I made a mistake this past weekend and wanted to crawl under the bleachers. I think the only reason I didn't was the game was over before we threw the jump! Player A is dribbling down the court when B makes a swat at the ball and knocks it loose. Immediately coach A hollers for a TO, and like the idiot I can be I blow the whistle and holler "Timeout!" About a nanosecond later I realize team A couldn't call TO without player possession, and of course coach B politely (he's winning by a zillion points) reminds me of this on my way to the table. My question is this: When you blow the whistle and quickly realize you should kick yourself in the pants, is there a way to cover? Can you just say 'whoops,' call an unintentional whistle, and give the ball back to the team with possession; or, do you just take the abuse and appoligize for being a schmuck?

[Brian Watson]

If you blow your whistle and realize your mistake before you signal you can try and get away with the inadvertant whistle, but if you signal, you're hosed gotta give one no matter what.

[Dan_ref]

Under NCAA you can take back an inadvertent
time out (no one wanted it but you called one
by mistake), under NFHS you can't. Of course this
didn't happen to you. In your case, as Brian said,
just suck it up, offer apologies, once you've blown
the ball dead either side can have a TO.

What I can't figure out from your post is did player B
have possesion of the ball or just knock it away
when you blew?

[Danvrapp]

Originally posted by Dan_ref
What I can't figure out from your post is did player B
have possesion of the ball or just knock it away
when you blew?

Nah. The ball was rolling harmlessly across the floor. Thanks for the input. I knew I was wrong, but I just wasn't sure if there was an 'official' way to clean up my mess.

[Mark Padgett]

Originally posted by Danvrapp
About a nanosecond later I realize team A couldn't call TO without player possession

Team A (or B, for that matter) can never call timeout. Only you or your partner(s) can call a timeout. Players and head coaches can only request them.

I know this sounds incredibly nit-picky, but I've seen players stop playing when a coach or another player yells for a timeout, and sometimes (like in your case), that team is not entitled to one. We need to keep reinforcing the idea that players need to keep playing until (and sometimes even after) the whistle. Not only that, coaches need to realize that they can't get a timeout every time they want one, only when it is allowed under rule - and we, not them, are the judges of how to interpret and administer the rules.