January 7th, 2006 at 11:53 pm
I refereed 4½ games for the first Saturday of Upward Basketball, and my eyes were the only things that got tired. I’ll feel it Sunday,though.
It was probably the best Week 1 we’ve had. We have four divisions: grades 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8. Usually the 1st and 2nd grade games are terrible with double dribbling and traveling, but they only committed that about 5 or six times during a whole game this time. By the time they get into 5th grade they’ve already learned how to “carry” the ball thanks to watching NCAA and NBA basketball.
The strangest call I made today was in the Grade 7-8 game, when a team tried to start a play that sent one player circling under the hoop while the guard had the ball. As the circling player came back out he bulldozed another player, as if he didn’t even see the poor kid. So of course the kid with the ball, when the whistle blew, was quite confused as to what he did. 
Ref extra: Basketball games can be referred with two or three referees. We use a two-person set. The one closer to the basket is called “Lead” and the other “Trail”. They each have their own areas of responsibility, the Lead looking into the court and covering his near square while the Trail takes the L:
The Lead also watches the baseline and the sideline nearer to him for out-of-bounds calls.
When the team on defense gets the ball and pushes the ball toward the other basket, the Lead comes to half court and becomes the Trail, and the former Trail runs to the other basket and becomes the Lead.
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