The Official Forum  

Go Back   The Official Forum > Basketball

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 12:41pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 107
Hi All,

Officials, just like players and coaches, will have their off nights. I probably had one of those nights last friday at a girls varsity game.

In any case, afterwards, I had a nice long talk with a veteran official (who was the AD of the school I was at) and she noted that I should "referee the defense" better.

To be honest, I thought I had slowed my habit of ball watching and focused on the defense better. However, after having a chance to replay a little bit of the game in my head, I realized I had reverted back during the game.

My best guess as to why is both teams were playing zone a lot. When the ball swung from side to side, I would tend to watch the ball swing and when a player drove to the hoop against the zone, I would immediately focus on the player with the ball rather than the nearby defenders. I think I unfairly penalized the defense a few times with some calls.

In any case, I was curious what the other officials here have to offer on working/improving this aspect of officiating?

Thanks!
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 12:54pm
Esteemed Participant
 
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Vancouver, WA
Posts: 4,775
Talk to yourself...as you set up in the half-court, tell yourself "Find blue" or whatever color is on defense. Then rotate thru numbers - as the ball swings to one side, find the nearest blue (or whatever color) player and tell yourself his/her number. Example - "as ball swings and blue #25 starts to rush at the ball, say in your head "Watch 25, watch 25...it's all about keeping your concentration level high at all times, and mental reminders will help quite a bit.
Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 12:59pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: N.D.
Posts: 1,829
I've been at it for over 30 years and I still have to tell myself, "Watch the defense, watch the defense..."
Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 12:59pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Posts: 1,342
Quote:
Originally posted by rockyroad
Talk to yourself...as you set up in the half-court, tell yourself "Find blue" or whatever color is on defense. Then rotate thru numbers - as the ball swings to one side, find the nearest blue (or whatever color) player and tell yourself his/her number. Example - "as ball swings and blue #25 starts to rush at the ball, say in your head "Watch 25, watch 25...it's all about keeping your concentration level high at all times, and mental reminders will help quite a bit.
The advice is good. However, you will still have the tendency to ball watch. What about off ball coverage?

Watch your primary and all of blue in your primary.
__________________
truerookie
Reply With Quote
  #5 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 01:30pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 1,673
Send a message via MSN to IREFU2 Send a message via Yahoo to IREFU2
Quote:
Originally posted by truerookie
Quote:
Originally posted by rockyroad
Talk to yourself...as you set up in the half-court, tell yourself "Find blue" or whatever color is on defense. Then rotate thru numbers - as the ball swings to one side, find the nearest blue (or whatever color) player and tell yourself his/her number. Example - "as ball swings and blue #25 starts to rush at the ball, say in your head "Watch 25, watch 25...it's all about keeping your concentration level high at all times, and mental reminders will help quite a bit.
The advice is good. However, you will still have the tendency to ball watch. What about off ball coverage?

Watch your primary and all of blue in your primary.
I concur on this note and to add to it, try to find your match ups. That way you know who is on the offense and the defense.
__________________
Score the Basket!!!!
Reply With Quote
  #6 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 01:31pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 182
What works for me when I am lead is to work wide and slightly turn my body away from the ball to where I can only see it out of the corner of my eye. As far as C and T go, I just have to keep talking to myself...
__________________
[B]Things turn out best for those that make the best out of the way things turn out - John Wooden[B]
Reply With Quote
  #7 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 01:48pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 1,910
Look for matchups in your area. If there aren't any, find the matchup closest to your area and work with them. A bit of a 3 man mechanic, but it works for 2.
Reply With Quote
  #8 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 02:11pm
Esteemed Participant
 
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Vancouver, WA
Posts: 4,775
Quote:
Originally posted by truerookie
Quote:
Originally posted by rockyroad
Talk to yourself...as you set up in the half-court, tell yourself "Find blue" or whatever color is on defense. Then rotate thru numbers - as the ball swings to one side, find the nearest blue (or whatever color) player and tell yourself his/her number. Example - "as ball swings and blue #25 starts to rush at the ball, say in your head "Watch 25, watch 25...it's all about keeping your concentration level high at all times, and mental reminders will help quite a bit.
The advice is good. However, you will still have the tendency to ball watch. What about off ball coverage?

Watch your primary and all of blue in your primary.
Huh??? Telling myself to watch the defense will cause me to watch the ball??? What are you talking about?
Reply With Quote
  #9 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 02:18pm
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: In a little pink house
Posts: 5,289
Quote:
Originally posted by rockyroad
Quote:
Originally posted by truerookie
Quote:
Originally posted by rockyroad
Talk to yourself...as you set up in the half-court, tell yourself "Find blue" or whatever color is on defense. Then rotate thru numbers - as the ball swings to one side, find the nearest blue (or whatever color) player and tell yourself his/her number. Example - "as ball swings and blue #25 starts to rush at the ball, say in your head "Watch 25, watch 25...it's all about keeping your concentration level high at all times, and mental reminders will help quite a bit.
The advice is good. However, you will still have the tendency to ball watch. What about off ball coverage?

Watch your primary and all of blue in your primary.
Huh??? Telling myself to watch the defense will cause me to watch the ball??? What are you talking about?
I think he's saying that your advice seems to be saying to watch the defender that's on the ball. But what about defenders away from the ball?
__________________
"It is not enough to do your best; you must know what to do, and then do your best." - W. Edwards Deming
Reply With Quote
  #10 (permalink)  
Old Tue Jan 17, 2006, 02:47pm
Esteemed Participant
 
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Vancouver, WA
Posts: 4,775
Quote:
Originally posted by Back In The Saddle

The advice is good. However, you will still have the tendency to ball watch. What about off ball coverage?

Watch your primary and all of blue in your primary.
Huh??? Telling myself to watch the defense will cause me to watch the ball??? What are you talking about? [/B][/QUOTE]

I think he's saying that your advice seems to be saying to watch the defender that's on the ball. But what about defenders away from the ball? [/B][/QUOTE]

Well, the original post made mention of the ball swinging from side to side and drives to the basket as the main areas where the Poster was having problems...so I responded on how to help with that - still not sure how that answer would cause someone to ball-watch, but whatever...
Reply With Quote
  #11 (permalink)  
Old Wed Jan 18, 2006, 12:46am
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Portland, Oregon
Posts: 9,466
Send a message via AIM to rainmaker
The way to break the ball-watching habit is to tape a college game off TV, find an off-ball foul in the game, then keep watching the play again and again until you see the foul before the ref blows the whistle.

--OR--

Work a game where your partner never looks off-ball. You do it instead. The whole game. It's amazing what you'll see, and you'll enjoy the off-ball parts from then on.
Reply With Quote
  #12 (permalink)  
Old Wed Jan 18, 2006, 12:50am
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: In a little pink house
Posts: 5,289
Something that works for me is to find the two nearest matchups and watch them.
__________________
"It is not enough to do your best; you must know what to do, and then do your best." - W. Edwards Deming
Reply With Quote
  #13 (permalink)  
Old Wed Jan 18, 2006, 01:32am
Do not give a damn!!
 
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: On the border
Posts: 30,463
I just learned early on that watching off ball was to my advantage and that is what I did. If the ball is not in my primary or even near my primary I do not follow the ball. I do not do anything special than just watch off ball when I am supposed to. Not sure there is a magic trick to it for me.

Peace
__________________
Let us get into "Good Trouble."
-----------------------------------------------------------
Charles Michael “Mick” Chambers (1947-2010)
Reply With Quote
  #14 (permalink)  
Old Wed Jan 18, 2006, 02:20am
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 2,557
Quote:
Originally posted by Back In The Saddle
Something that works for me is to find the two nearest matchups and watch them.
This works for me, find a competitive matchup.
Reply With Quote
  #15 (permalink)  
Old Wed Jan 18, 2006, 03:24am
Official Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 508
Reffing the defense is important

Reffing the defense is important, for sure, but, taken to the extreme, you can really lose 'sight' of the offense. One way to keep a balance is to learn the offenses on the fly. Of course, if there's just motion-without-a-purpose, well, it could be a long night.
__________________
Sarchasm: the gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the recipient.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:48pm.



Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.3.0 RC1