Making sure... or not

[WDEvol]

Had a similar play in a game the other night. JV Boys. A1 attempts a layup, B44 comes from behind and takes a mighty swing at the ball in flight. Misses the ball, slaps the backboard. I've got a whistle, but only because B44 fouled A1 in the process. A's head coach is clapping, thinking he's got basket interference plus a free throw. I call the foul, coach is going nuts because I tell him that slapping the backboard, in this case, is nothing. He calls timeout to discuss it further. I explain the rule, he refuses to believe me. After we shoot the free throws for the foul, I hear him yell to his team, "Hey, slap the backboard every time they try a shot from now on."

Fortunately, this was a JV game, and team A had not a single player that could come close to touching the backboard, so we didn't have any further issues.

(In hindsight, I probably should have whacked the guy - a noted local "howler monkey" - but it was the first game of a three-game night and I didn't see any sense in making the situation worse.)