BleacherCoaches.com

Conemaugh Valley and Blacklick squared off in Richland Thursday Night and the game was outstanding. With the score tied at 56 CV drove to the basket and the shot was blocked the ball is in the air, players banging to get to it, CV grabs it and shoots a fader in desperation and the whistle blows! .02 seconds on the clock and the referee calls a foul on BV. Why would he put himself in that situation? I know you will be thinking a foul is a foul. But when the ref blew the whistle the place was in dead silence for the call because nobody even knew who fouled, this was not a player being tackled while shooting. I believe the ref could have called 8 different players for a foul in the scrum that insued during the loose ball but the one he called put CV to the line to seal the win with .02 on the clock. Give me some input, why in the world would anyone in a decent frame of mind call a foul at that time? You can say he was not aware of the time on the clock? BS to that theory, they know. It was ashame to see the game end, either way, like that. A four minute overtime period would have caused this official a lot less headache.

he wanted the game to be over? Haha. Other than that i agree with you, there is no reason why that should be called

Because the referee was an inferior high school athlete who was never in a big game like that. Now, with a whistle in his mouth, he finally had his moment in the sun.

Terrible call on a play that had absolutely no impact on the game. Hopefully this ref will receive an negative rating from Joe Lutz and the evaluators.

These kids battled for 31:59.08 only to have an official determine the outcome of the game. Like I said before it is disappointing for that to happen to either team. This was a tied ballgame. From what I hear this referee is notorious for the "big call" at the end of close games. Actually his son was the other official in the crew.

It is a shame, feel especially bad for those seniors.

absolutely agree with you.... In any game especialy a playoff game with the game tied you don't make a foul on a rebound put back unless it is obvious. You let the game go in OT and let them fight it out then don't let it come down to a controversial call with the game on the line.

Quite a lot of basketball experts on this site. Why don't you guys all take the test and get your PIAA license so everyone can get on the internet and **** about you? Why shouldn't an official call a foul with .02. Its not his job to watch the clock, it is his job to look for fouls. He seen one and called it just as it should be. It takes a better official to make that call with .02 left than one that does not make that call.

Quick question for you? Without looking it up, how much (on average) does an official make for a Varsity basketball game? These officials buy their own gas, many travel from counties away, give up their evenings in the winter. What do they get for it? 500 bitching fans in the bleachers. Lay off the officials because there are not many to go around as it is.

I don't post on high school sports very often usually just get on here for some information on how local schools are doing and all I hear is about the officials. I would like the see all these bleachercoaches "experts" officiate even a girl's junior high basketball game then say something.

abpk2903 They get paid on average $60/game and most do not report it on income tax returns. (I have quite a few friends who officiate) I am sure they get a little more green for playoff games. You are the first person I know that would deem this call alright. Anything short of a tackle at that point in a time game should not be called. Why you might ask? First and foremost who in a decent frame of mind would want to determine the game. He knew the time and the score and the circumstance of the foul he called. He without a doubt knew that that call was a game ender! Think abut the seniors on the losing end. This was the last basketball for not most of them, but all of them at BV. Let them determine if they move on or not in an overtime period.

You were not at the game so do not have a sniff on what went down. You have a loose ball and 10 players attacking it, contact all over the place and then a foul is called in which silence breaks out because it is that un-obvious on who committed it, if that is even a word! The opposing coach makes the comment in the paper that there is no way to put what happened into perspective. You do not have to be a genius to figure that line out.

$60 is a little on the high side around here. That what officials get if they do both a JV/Varsity game. Remember also, it takes these officials years of doing Junior High basketball games for $35 to get to this level. Many of these officials will actually spend the next few weeks officiating elementary tournaments for basically free.

Look Prince, I was not there and it might have been a bad call. The official might know that it was not one of his best calls. C'mon though I'm sure the official did the best he could to call a clean and fair game. Every playoff game means some seniors will play their last game. I remember playing my last high school sporting event. Years down the road though these seniors will not remember the .02 call but rather years of memories and friendships developed on and off of the court. I'm sure bleachercoaches was created for people to be able to have conversations but current events in local sports and not a place to vent for every bad call in central PA.

To sum things up here before I ramble on, if a team does not want this situation to happen then don't miss a lay-up earlier in the game, make a few more free throws, get a key defensive stop, ect. If they did any of the things above they do not need to worry about the official calling a foul with .02. Prince, i'm not just after you here. I went to a few high school games this year and all I hear is coaches, parents, students, players blaming everything on the officials. It is getting worse each year. I think people need to remember that usually only the LOSERS make excuses and they need to accept some responsibility themselves for the situation that they are faced with.

abpk2903 - I agree with you whole heartedly. During the course of any game you can look back and find 10 or more situations that would have changed the outcome of the game and taken the officiating element out of it. I believe Blacklick was 10 of 16 from the free throw line. Easy shots were missed by both teams. You probably would not have heard a peep about this if BV was up two, a foul was called and CV had to sink a pair to tie the game. These referees were pretty much invisible until midway through the fourth quarter.

I think the tough part for a Blacklick fan would be these four events:
1) BV has the ball and the lead and is called for a carrying the ball violation in the fourth. The point guard was not guarded tight and the kid appeared to have made the same move for three and half quarters without a call.

2) BV up four and off a missed shot a Viking player follows up with a made basket and is called for an over the back violation. Not from any official other than the one out by mid court. Again if BV converts the short jumper this called could not have been called.

3) With :42 seconds to go in a tie game BV guard drives to the basket dishes off inside late whistle called for a player control off the pass. Bucket removed. Would have given CV the ball down 58-56.

4) The call with .2 seconds on the clock.

This Father and son officiating crew seemed to take over the show. BV fans should not be called for sour grapes because this call would not have made them winners but only afforded them the opportunity to play a four minute overtime to determine the fate of the season. The bad thing is the non-related official made very little impact on the game. The son portion of the crew appeared to be not much older than some of the players on the floor. Being a huge local sports fan I have heard that the Father portion of the crew is notorious for the "big" call in tight games. Can comment on that it was the first time I ever saw him officiate a game.