Game Log 1/18/2006: I remember the two calls.

I'm noticing as I write that I tend to focus only on the calls I don't care for. A reader might think that either (1) I suck or (2) I think I suck. I don't think either of those are true. But tonight will be no different.

JV and varsity games. Big schools. The JV game was quite uneventful, save a motormouth coach for Blue we had to warn (the warning worked). I wasn't feeling physically 100% tonight...am I coming down with something? My partner was a good varsity guy I liked. Game went fine.

The varsity game looked on paper to be a blowout, but Blue hung around for the first half, leading only by three. White is a team that tends to play up and down to their opposition, I've noticed (I've seen them a few times this season), and I was worried they'd get frustrated in the second half if Blue hung around. I thought what would be best for the quality of play would be for Blue to blow them away in the third quarter. Fortunately, they came out and hit a two, a three, and a two in their first three possessions. Ten-point game, and it never got too close thereafter.

I made one call I'd like back and had one miss that I need help with. The call I'd like back was on a rebound. White was boxing out Blue, but was reaching around Blue behind her, restricting Blue's movement. I don't want White to get away with that. I waited for something to happen. The ball bounced on the rim about five times and fell through. I went ahead and blue the whistle, figuring that I needed to nip this in the bud. I probably should have waited for a play where it had more impact...it looked like a fairly weak call even if I'm philosophically behind it.

The miss? Well, as lead in three-man, I'm pretty good about staying up close to the baseline as you're supposed to. This is an adjustment since I've been indoctrinated to stay deep in 2-man so I can get a wide, wide look.

The problem is that, from only 3-4 feet away, I can't look at the players' arms and legs at the same time. A couple of weeks ago, this meant travels that I didn't detect. Today, the White coach claimed her player got undercut. It's possible he was full of it, of course, but the point is that I was focused up high (looking for contact on the arm). The player didn't go to the floor or anything, but if she was hit low, I never had a chance of seeing it.

I'll need to talk to three-man experts about what to do. I don't like being so close to the players.

THINGS I DID WELL: Coach management was pretty good, sold some good out-of-bounds calls, gradually getting better at 3-man switches

THINGS TO WORK ON: Probably could have rotated more often, take a pass on non-impactive minimal contact rebound call

NEXT UP: Friday night. Big schools. It's gonna be a blowout challenge...could be a 50- or even 60-point win.