"Try it and you'll find out"

[Mark Padgett]

The other day I got a call to fill in for someone in 3 mens league games. Usually, I don't do "jerkball" but I hadn't reffed in almost two weeks and I needed the exercise so I took the games.

They went OK, actually. However, my partner threw a guy out in the second game. I heard what the guy said to deserve the ejection and there is no doubt he deserved it. I found out later what started it.

Coming out of a timeout, A1 was to inbound sideline just above the free throw line in frontcourt. My partner was administering and bounced the ball to A1. Apparently, A1 asked my partner if he could inbound into the backcourt. My partner replied, "Try it and you'll find out."

A1 looked at him in disbelief and asked again, this time not so politely. My partner repeated his answer. A1 then started telling my partner to stop "being an ***." My partner then blew the whistle - and called a five second inbound violation (I thought that was the really cool part).

This really set A1 off and he then proceeded to unleash his entire vocabulary of "words you wouldn't say in front of your mother", as I once heard a veteran describe them.

As I stated above, my partner called a T, ruled it flagrant and ejected A1.

Just another day on the job.