blocking and charging

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

I think that there are more blocking fouls called rather than charging fouls is because we officials are just doing an absolutely lousy job of officiating the defense. I have discussed the guarding/screening principles with more officials at the high school level and I am appalled at the number of officials that do not have a any idea what are the definitions of obtaining (NFHS)/establishing (NCAA/FIBA) a legal guarding position and maintaining that legal guarding position or screening (NFHS/NCAA/FIBA).

Just this past Thursday I officiated a girls' jr. H.S. DH with a fellow basketball officiating student of mine. After the games I was just furious with him. His mechanics were just terrible, we had way to many double whistles including a blarge. After the game we discussed the things that I saw. He started giving me pycho babble about how most of the guys he officiates with do not use the mechanics fundamentals as outlined in the NFHS Officials Handbook and did not understand why he had to also. In the blarge (which I took away from him, I had a charge; the dribbler made contact with defender right square in the middle of the defender's chest), he was out of position (he had not gone ball side as the lead) and I took the drive to the basket as the trail. When he described how he saw the play, I asked him what exactly did the defender do to not maintain a legal guarding position against the dribbler and he kept say that she got in the dribbler's way at the last second. We got out the rule book and looked at the definition of guarding and I asked him again why he wanted to call a charge when his own description of the play was a casebook description of charging and he said it just had to be a block because the defender got in the dribbler's way at the last second. At that point I gave up.

We have got to start officiating the defense and start calling more charges.