Officiating
OK, we all know the stories about the Anthony Jordan, the SEC referee who was pictured on social media with some LSU gear and made some ‘interesting’ callsign the Tigers’ win over UT on Saturday. (He was the official that whistled the foul 75 feet from the basket that led to the game-winning free throws in overtime. It was a foul, for sure. It also was 75 feet from the hoop with 1.4 seconds left.)
Well, Tuesday night, as college basketball turned to overtime tilts and conference grudge matches, the officiating again was highlighted in a couple of games in less than positive ways.
For starters and for full disclosure, two of these was one of our picks last night. (Our picks, well, wow, sometimes you miss the boat entirely, and sometimes the gambling Gods will make sure you remain humble. Consider us humbled gambling Gods.)
We had TCU minus-3.5 over West Virginia in a game that went to three overtimes before WVU pulled it out at home. TCU coach Jamie Dixon was not happy after the game when his team was whistled for 28 fouls – including a dreadful charge that waved off a bucket and likely cost the Frogs the game – compared to just 15 called against the Mountaineers.
We had Wisconsin minus-2 at Indiana, and here’s how the officiating went for the visitors. The analyst on the broadcast was Dan Dakich, who played at and graduated from Indiana, who said after the fifth puzzling call went against the Badgers offered this beauty that likely will get ESPN a phone call from IU athletic leadership. In reference to Hoosiers’ home, which is known as Assembly Hall, Dakich said, “That’s why it’s always been known as the Hall of Calls.”
The other game in which the officiating took a central position was THE win for THE Ohio State over Iowa, in which both McCafferys got technicals for complaining to the referees. Coach Fran McCaffery was especially heated and used some Bleeps and clearly mouthed “Cheating Mother (Bleeper)” at one of the officials. Here’s more.
(Our final pick was a push as LSU minus-11 limped home down the stretch of a game the Tigers dominated. LSU never trailed, led by as many as 21 in the first half and 19 in the second half. And Skylar Mays missed a free throw in the final seconds of the 66-55 win. Yes, that Skylar Mays who is shooting 86 from the line That’s how it goes sometimes. With the five overtimes and missed free throw for a 0-2-1, we are now 36-23-2, which is down to 61 percent.)
As for the officiating, am I crazy that it seems the officiating is worse or is it because of the technology or just our overall excuse-making in these modern-day times?
Good thing this is a Which Way Wednesday, huh?
Matter of perspective
Meet Brendan Johnston, a 106-pound high school wrestler who was moving through the consolation bracket of the Colorado state tournament.
Brendan WD’ed and forfeited his third-round match with Angel Rios because, “”I’m not really comfortable with a couple of things with wrestling a girl,” Johnston told the Denver Post. “The physical contact, there’s a lot of it in wrestling.
“And I guess the physical aggression, too. I don’t want to treat a young lady like that on the mat. Or off the mat. And not to disrespect the heart or the effort that she’s put in. That’s not what I want to do, either.”
Here’s the Post’s story on the tournament.
Rios went on to place fourth in the event, and another female, Jaclyn Gallegos, took fifth in the same weight class. They are the first girls to place at the Colorado state tournament.
Those two were both of Johnston’s losses as he declined to wrestle Jaclyn in the opening round.
And to put the exclamation point on Johnston’s belief, know this: He finished the season 37-6, and five of those losses were forfeits to females, with four coming to Rios.
Rios certainly does not have to apologize for her performance. She finished 22-3 and told a Denver TV station that she has three older brothers who were high school wrestlers and she grew up around it.
And Johnston reiterated his intention was personal and not some commentary on females wrestling or Rios or Gallegos individually.
“I think it’s possible to forfeit while still respecting them as athletes and competitors,” he told the Post. “I really don’t want to disrespect the hard work these ladies have put in. They’ve done a lot of that too. Some people think by forfeiting I’m disrespecting them. That’s not my intention at all.”
Well-played young man.
Please notice there was no law suits filed and no hullabaloo about the rules. This was a kid who had a personal conviction and lived by it, and it likely cost him a shot at a state title.
Colorado Rockies’ Nolan Arenado points upward as he crosses home plate after hitting a solo home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker)