Wow...that was eaisier than I thought.

[ranjo]

Originally Posted by BadNewsRef

That's definitely been my experience. Two good teams, playing at a high level, make a game so much easier to officiate. Most the calls call themselves. You get the obvious stuff and don't interject any sh!t into the game. Usually in these types of games, it isn't the calls you miss that bite you, it's calls you should have let go that stand out.

To expand on this thought: My experience was that I thought I was ready to move up to a higher level much sooner than I actually was ready just because the games (mostly summer camp) were somewhat easier to ref. I found that though the game can be easier to call at higher levels, the game can be much harder to manage. Coaches at this level seem to know every trick in the book to cause you to loose concentration or to make you question yourself. There are so many ways for an experienced coach to get an advantage. Things that come to mind are: Causing small delays with questions about who the proper free throw shooter is, if the clock properly started or stopped,the correct position of the pocession arrow, the application of a particular rule, or to try to get a player re-entered into the game when he is not eligible. Calling the same play the same way on both ends of the floor gets to be a real art. You have definitely got to be on your toes and able to multi-task in some of these games. I also find that the players at higher levels are a little more sneaky in their ability to foul without being noticeable. Sorry about the rambling - Just trying to pass on some of my experiences.