fantastic finishes

[A Pennsylvania Coach]

I can feel this board starting to slow down, but I'm not ready to let go of basketball season. Anyone care to post the most exciting endings to games you've worked or attended?

[Mark Padgett]

I had a game once where both coaches came up to me after the game and told me they really appreciated my efforts and that they both thought I called a great game. That was the most exciting ending I ever had.

As I said, it happened once.

[zebraman]

Believe it or not, the most exciting ending to a game I had this year was a high school girls game. First place team vs. second place team near end of the season - schools only 7 miles a part so crowd is fairly evenly split. "Spirit night" at home school so it was a complete sellout (I think the gym holds 3,000). Vistor (team B) ahead by 10 most of the way but home team makes frantic comeback and goes ahead by 2 with 10 seconds left. Visitor gets ball into front court and calls time with 7 seconds left. I'm trail so I have last-second shot (2 person here in WA). B1 drives for a lay-up and I hear horn just before she releases ball so I wave it off, find my partner and sprint for the locker room. Watched the tape 2 days later and I nailed the call. Quite the rush. I had some close boys games, but none that came down to the wire quite like that.

Z

[ChuckElias]

Originally posted by zebraman
B1 drives for a lay-up and I hear horn just before she releases ball so I wave it off, find my partner and sprint for the locker room.

Aren't you required to check the courtside monitor on all last-second shots?

[JRutledge]

One was a big rivalry between two conference teams and the game went into double overtime. We were working a 3 man game and I was the C that waved off a shot that would have ended the game in regulation.

Last season, I had about 20 games that went down to the last seconds with either a shot or missed shot to win the game in regulation. About 5 of those went into overtime. That was a wild season.

Peace

[cmathews]

big State to State (WY-NE) small schools girls game, rivalry type, NE Team Undefeated WY team lost one at the time....played in WY. WY team commits a foul with .2 seconds left, NE needs both throws to get to OT....we went to OT...wyoming team eventually won...but great game..

[JAdams]

for us Buckeye fans in Ohio, the Fiesta Bowl double OT win vs. Miami was the highlight of the last three months. Nothing that happened on the hardwood while wearing stripes even came close this year. Sorry--should be off-topic, I guess.

[devdog69]

Originally posted by Mark Padgett
I had a game once where both coaches came up to me after the game and told me they really appreciated my efforts and that they both thought I called a great game. That was the most exciting ending I ever had.

As I said, it happened once.

You were the alternate official right Mark?

[Mark Padgett]

Originally posted by devdog69

You were the alternate official right Mark?

Actually, I think it may have been a dream.

[Tom Cook]

In my first "big" varsity girls game we went into overtime. The visitors hit the front of a one-and-one to take a two point lead. 4.4 seconds on the clock and no timeouts left for the hometeam. The kid missed the second free-throw, the home team rebounded dribbled up the court and banked in a three-pointer (sort of reminscient of a Meadowlark Lemon hook from way out) at the buzzer.

[Nevadaref]

My best finish this year was in a Boys JV game. After reading the description you'll agree that from an official's standpoint this was probably the best ending of the year.
Coach of blue is a jerk and every official here knows it. He has been a pain the whole game, but never crossed the line. Tie score with 4 seconds to play and white has the ball for a throw-in FT line extended opposite the table. I am the trail and administer the throw-in. The ball is passed inbounds directly in front of me. The player catches the ball while facing his defender, and before dribbling, tosses the ball over the defender's head, runs around him, allows the ball to bounce on the floor once, grabs it, and then shoots. Just as he releases the ball, my partner blows his whistle. The shot goes in and the clock stops with .4 seconds left. My partner, who is rather inexperienced, waves off the basket and calls traveling from the lead on the opposite side of the lane. Since the play happened right in front of me and I know that he is incorrect, I go over and talk with him.
He tells me that he thought that was illegal, but since I am sure it was not asks what we should do.
I told him that we would have to deem the whistle inadvertant and since the ball was probably not out of the shooter's hands when he blew his whistle it is dead, and we will give the ball to white OOB on the endline. He was fine with this.
Now we called both coaches to the table to explain the ruling to them. The coach of blue strongly objected, "Why to do they get the ball?" I replied that we didn't think that the ball was out of the player's hands yet. He loudly stated, "It was that far out of his hands!" while holding his hands above his head and three feet apart.
I asked him, "Are you sure, coach?"
Blue coach: "Yeah, I'm sure." Obviously, thinking he is going to get an alternate possession.
Me, loudly enough for all the fans in the bleachers behind us to hear: "You're absolutely sure that ball was out of his hands?"
Blue coach: "Yes, absolutely!"
At this point I said, "Okay, coach, you must be right." then turned to the scorer's table and said, "Count that basket please, blue ball!"
He was horrified!!!!!!!!
We put the ball in play, they missed, and white won by 2.

[DrakeM]

Classic!!!!!!