Floor Markings

[Stat-Man]

[QUOTE=kwv001;565025]I just worked a game for the first time in a new HS gym in our area. When marking the floor, they did not put down the semi-circle at the top of the free throw lane. [QUOTE]

Our in-city CYO rival has a gym, but the ceiling is low and the court dimensions are small. And they, too, have no semicircles at the lane (and no 3-point lines). The court is so small, the scorers table is in the entrance to the adjoining kitchen.

About ~8-10 years ago, their JV teams (4th-6th grade) would play in this gym while the 7th/8th grade teams played at the nearby Catholic High School. Now, all their teams play at another site.

Speaking CYO, we have a league here that is similar, it's called the PAL (Parochial Athletic League). One of the gyms in that league was so small, the 3-point line only went to the free-throw line extended, at which point the line went to the boundary line. Pretty awkward design.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Ref Ump Welsch

One of the gyms in that league was so small, the 3-point line only went to the free-throw line extended, at which point the line went to the boundary line.

Same thing here in one of our Catholic middle school league gyms. Home bench, and table crew, on one endline, and visitors bench on the other endline. It feels like we're playing basketball in a single lane bowling alley. But the gym does have some charm.

Also, I've actually worked a high school (prep school) varsity game in a gym that was so small that the feet of the players sitting on the benches were inbounds most of the time, and the court had two division lines, one closest to the basket the team was shooting at for the ten second violation count, and another one farther back for a backcourt violation. Really.

[Stat-Man]

Ref Ump Welsch - The gym you described sounds like our current home gym for CYO. An adjoining school closed two years ago, but the parish lets us rent their gym since we have none. The gym is narrow enough that the three point line meets the side line.

###

Now, it's time for my story about the smallest gym I've ever been in.

When my "career" staterted 25 years ago, we had a home and home scrimmage series with an area Montessori Academy. Apparently, they must not have played many games or had much of a sports program because they actually brought cheerleaders with them when they scrimmaged us at our gym. I remeber my friend (who was my co-student manager) and I asking each other "who brings cheerleaders to a scrimmage?"

When we went to their gym the following week, coach asked that only the reserve players go so that they could get more playing time and experience. I still remember walking into the gym and seeing that it was so small that the free throw circles intersected with the large half court circle.

They didn't have a scorer, so I ended up having to do the scorebook. Thank goodness my dad had taught me the basics during that first year of mine. To make things even more interesting, some of the home players were listed in the book with no number since they didn't have jerseys, just team warmups.

In lieu of a scoreboard, they had some bulletin board behind the table where some lady would manually adjust the score by putting up cards with the numbers on them. The clock was a football timer and what looked a bicycle horn you had to blow to signal subs or the end of the period.

Since the kitchen was also adjoining the gym, every time Montessori scored, people inside the kitchen would bang on pots and pans.

We ended up playing six periods. We got outscored in the first four, but we ended up winning the final two. Not too bad for playing our second and third units exclusively. Final results notwithstanding, the experience was definitely priceless!

I also remember on the drive back home (I can't remmeber if my dad drove players or if I was driven by other parents), some of the players were saying "If they join our league, they need a real gym!"

[JugglingReferee]

Drived?

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JugglingReferee

Drived?

Drive, Drived, Drove.

[grunewar]

ARGH!

Dug up this old thread as I reffed two boys 12U games last night in a horrific gym.

Carpet floor with absolutely no room for players, coaches, parents, etc. to sit/stand. Coaches are nearly forced onto the floor as there is little room for them to stand on the sidelines next to the table. Spectators are barely off the court, and are ON the court when they stretch their legs. Plus all of the various equipment (mats, benches, poles) along the endline make it impossible for the officials to get properly positioned - I nearly tripped and fell a few times and players crashed into objects at great speed and peril sometimes (or so I thought).

Captains and Coaches meeting was serious business this night. Players were given great latitude along the sidelines inbounding the ball. One boy tried to inbound the ball and keep his feet out of bounds and practically fell onto the court he was so off balance. When the players and parents started arriving for the second game, the corners of the gym were barely playable with so many people in attendance.

My least favorite moment. I'm on the sidelines and call a violation. When I put my hand up - it went up and into a chain net hanging from one of the side basket that was just off the floor. Chain net in an indoor gym?

Only good part was I wasn't tired at the end of the night from too much running......

If I never call a game in that gym again it'll be too soon.

Originally Posted by grunewar

ARGH!

Dug up this old thread as I reffed two boys 12U games last night in a horrific gym.

Carpet floor with absolutely no room for players, coaches, parents, etc. to sit/stand. Coaches are nearly forced onto the floor as there is little room for them to stand on the sidelines next to the table. Spectators are barely off the court, and are ON the court when they stretch their legs. Plus all of the various equipment (mats, benches, poles) along the endline make it impossible for the officials to get properly positioned - I nearly tripped and fell a few times and players crashed into objects at great speed and peril sometimes (or so I thought).

Captains and Coaches meeting was serious business this night. Players were given great latitude along the sidelines inbounding the ball. One boy tried to inbound the ball and keep his feet out of bounds and practically fell onto the court he was so off balance. When the players and parents started arriving for the second game, the corners of the gym were barely playable with so many people in attendance.

My least favorite moment. I'm on the sidelines and call a violation. When I put my hand up - it went up and into a chain net hanging from one of the side basket that was just off the floor. Chain net in an indoor gym?

Only good part was I wasn't tired at the end of the night from too much running......

If I never call a game in that gym again it'll be too soon.

If you all watch the movie "Boys Town" made back in the 1930's with Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney, you'll see a big room in which Mickey is celebrated as the newly-elected Mayor of Boys Town. That room is now the middle school gym, which has a carpet floor and not much room like grunewar described in his posting.