Referee with "rabbit ears"

[SMEngmann]

My response is that this is a typical middle school situation. Most coaches at this level are parents and their only experience is in watching TV, they think they know it all and they aren't smart enough to pick their spots and use discretion to properly communicate with officials. Most new officials at this level are intimidated by the commentary of fans and especially fanboy coaches, consequently, these coaches gain control of the game rather than the refs, and that leads to situations like this. The official involved clearly did not have the mindset to deal with the situation, and the assistant coach was way out of line. As with for the officials, administrators are simply happy to have someone coaching the team, and so they end up with this. Middle school basketball should be about developing skills on all levels, particularly communication. Most new refs don't last beyond this level because there is too much crap to deal with and they don't have either the tools or the skin to deal with it.