Midcourt Scramble
 

This just happened this morning. National AAU 12U tournament.

I am working with a new partner who has impressed me from the opening tip off. We are working a great close game between two evenly matched up and down the floor teams.

In the third quarter there is a scramble for a loose ball in my partners area. I am expecting a whistle and a jump ball. The whistle sounds and I hear my partner say " time out white - black ball on the endline". Both coaches are on the floor. How can this be? If white had pocession to call the time out, why is black getting the ball?

We herd both coaches back to their benchs and come together. We decide we do not have any type of correctable error, we will charge white with a time out, and give the ball back to black. We explain to both coaches the call was an officials error, not correctable, and get the game going. The game continues to be tight and fun to work right to the end.

These kids are coached to call for a time out when they get in a situation where there may be a turnover. Numerous times during the game when there was a loose ball, kids from both teams were calling for time outs. Its just another one of those things to be aware of and add to your pregame list.

Would anybody have done anything differently?

There are only ten rules, but we still manage to screw it up now and then don't we.

It sounds as though giving the ball back to black means that black had possession and granting white's timeout request was the error. If so, I think you handled it perfectly. I don't see any other ruling you could make. Official's error and move on.

if black didn't have the ball when the whistle went to grant the timeout request, then you might need to review some things.

PS: I guess now I know what a group of coaches is called - a "herd". :p

It's an accidental or inadvertant whistle, not a correctable error.

You only had 4 choices by rule, depending on the exact situation.
1) If white had possession when the whistle blew, then white will get charged with the TO and will also get the ball for the throw-in.
2) If neither team had possession(player control) when the whistle blew, then the team with team control would get the ball for a throw-in. Rule 4-36-2(a)
3) If neither team had possession or team control , such as after a missed shot, you go with the arrow. Rule 4-36-2(c).
4) If Black had possession of the ball when the whistle blew, black will get the throw-in after White's TO. Rule 4-36-2(a).

No matter what, in all cases once your partner awarded the TO to White, White will get charged with it. Casebook play 5.8.3SitE.

Just get together and decide who had the ball or whether it was loose when the whistle blew. That decides which one of the 4 situations above is applicable.

WTF??? :confused: :confused: :confused:

Do you mean if either team had possession?

Went back and fixed it. I meant no player control at the whistle, but still team control.

You do realize the "F" in WTF stands for the word fu¢k, right?

Easier to talk the talk than walk the walk... same ol' same ol' wherever you go.

:rolleyes:

Was this clarification necessary?

Do you have your rabbit ears on? :eek:

Yep. And they are tuned to the "Do as I say, not as I do" channel.