First playoff assignment

[A Pennsylvania Coach]

So the game went smoothly last night. We were on the edge of Winter Storm Nemo (when did they start naming winter storms anyway?) so tip time got pushed up an hour to try to beat the worst of it. I thought that the weather might dampen attendance but by game time the 2,500-seat gym was about 85% full.

My partners are both veterans and we had a good pre-game. I had a quiet first quarter, C most of the time. The teams were tight. 5-2 at the quarter, 12-11 at halftime. This was the third time these teams played each other so it was a bit of a chess match. In the second half, one team got a few fast-break buckets and led by as much as 11 before their opponents hit a couple late threes to cut it to 4 with 30 seconds left. The team in the lead hit some free throws to clinch the win, 37-28.

I did over-rotate a couple times. When I was L and the defense was in a 1-3-1 it was tricky for me. I was able to hold off on a whistle a couple times when I was new lead in transition on an OOB. The one thing I know I missed was a free throw violation from the C. Teammate of the free thrower spun out of the lane space to try to go around the defender to rebound while the shot was in the air. I was concentrating on closing down and got surprised by it. When she did it again a couple minutes later I was C again and caught her that time.

My partners felt we had a good game. Since we were the only game of the night there were several other officials in attendance. I called a couple that I know pretty well and got some feedback. Apparently I looked nervous during pre game. One guy told me my first couple counts were ridiculously fast! He also thought I looked more comfortable after my first call.

All in all it was a great experience. Great crowd, good game, and I don't think I embarrassed myself. Now I can't wait for the next one!