Ask a Basketball Referee anything

651 Questions

Last Answer on September 20, 2019

Further to the backcourt question, once team A (offense) achieves front court status, and then team A dribbler attempts a pass to his team mate, if it hits his team mate's hand (but not in control of teammate) and goes backcourt, is this a violation?

Asked by MJ over 11 years ago

Yes, it is a backcourt violation because team A never lost team control.

Varsity game. We are using a man defense. Their pg trips and faceplants into his defender' thigh, who gets a blocking foul. How did that happen?

One one possession he is dribbling when he trips, possibly on his teammate. He faceplants on his defende

Asked by Rodk about 10 years ago

I obviously didn't see the play, but if the defender has obtained legal guarding position (that is, he is entitled to the space he is at) and the opponent crashes his face into the defender's knee it is either a no-call or an offensive player control foul.

829 Votes

i reffed basketball this morning my partner blew an indavertand whitsle the team ran down court scored the basket put the points on the board because nobody heard the whitsle can we take the points off the board and go back to where the indvartand wh

Asked by don jenkins about 10 years ago

If your partner said that he whistled the ball dead inadvertently, it does not matter if no one in the gym heard it - the ball was dead when he blew his whistle. He should have taken the points off the board, apologized to the coach and put the ball in play at the point of the inadvertent whistle.

826 Votes

can an official Basketball match start with 1 referee on the court?

Asked by Samer Taha almost 11 years ago

While it is not ideal, a game can begin with 1 referee. It seems that it happens occasionally at the lower levels but rarely at the Varsity level because if the Varsity crew is short a ref, they will invite a ref from the pre-lim (usually sophomore) game to stay and work the game with them.

When I have had to ref myself, I find that play under the basket gets rough because the players know that you can only follow the ball. You also miss a lot of line calls.

826 Votes

Also on Jobstr...

Veterinarian

Do you think keeping monkeys as pets is a bad idea?

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Is there a big difference in the amount of mail you deliver today from 5-10 years ago?

Audiologist

Are earbuds dangerous for my ears?

Our AAU league posted a notice on its site that starting in spring, players need gov't issued photo ID. But it did not say how the rule was to be enforced or when or by whom ID's would be examined. Do you have any more on that? Thanks.

Asked by rodk about 11 years ago

I do not have any special knowledge of AAU league or tournament rules. I do know that age verification is a perpetual problem in traveling basketball.

825 Votes

What does the score have to be when an official sees that the losing team has no chance of winning and just ends the game?

Asked by Solomon Green almost 11 years ago

There is no provision in the NFHS rulebook for calling a game because of a lopsided score. The only reason I would call a game early is if continuing the game presented a safety issue to the players, fans or officials.

824 Votes

Hi Ref,

Player A1 dribbles then stops and holds the ball with both hands. Defensive player B1 smacks the ball from A1 causing it to hit the floor and bounce up to A1. What options does A1 have?

Asked by Peter Johnston over 10 years ago

A1 can dribble pass or shoot because B1 knocked the ball away and A1 no longer had player possession.

823 Votes

Showing 344 - 350

Show All

301 More Answers by Basketball Referee

Last 7

47 48 49 50 51 52

...

Next 7 Answers

Basketball Referee

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

Further to the backcourt question, once team A (offense) achieves front court status, and then team A dribbler attempts a pass to his team mate, if it hits his team mate's hand (but not in control of teammate) and goes backcourt, is this a violation?

Varsity game. We are using a man defense. Their pg trips and faceplants into his defender' thigh, who gets a blocking foul. How did that happen?

One one possession he is dribbling when he trips, possibly on his teammate. He faceplants on his defende

i reffed basketball this morning my partner blew an indavertand whitsle the team ran down court scored the basket put the points on the board because nobody heard the whitsle can we take the points off the board and go back to where the indvartand wh

can an official Basketball match start with 1 referee on the court?

Also on Jobstr...

Our AAU league posted a notice on its site that starting in spring, players need gov't issued photo ID. But it did not say how the rule was to be enforced or when or by whom ID's would be examined. Do you have any more on that? Thanks.

What does the score have to be when an official sees that the losing team has no chance of winning and just ends the game?

Hi Ref,

Player A1 dribbles then stops and holds the ball with both hands. Defensive player B1 smacks the ball from A1 causing it to hit the floor and bounce up to A1. What options does A1 have?

Basketball Referee

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

Further to the backcourt question, once team A (offense) achieves front court status, and then team A dribbler attempts a pass to his team mate, if it hits his team mate's hand (but not in control of teammate) and goes backcourt, is this a violation?

Varsity game. We are using a man defense. Their pg trips and faceplants into his defender' thigh, who gets a blocking foul. How did that happen?One one possession he is dribbling when he trips, possibly on his teammate. He faceplants on his defende

i reffed basketball this morning my partner blew an indavertand whitsle the team ran down court scored the basket put the points on the board because nobody heard the whitsle can we take the points off the board and go back to where the indvartand wh

can an official Basketball match start with 1 referee on the court?

Also on Jobstr...

Our AAU league posted a notice on its site that starting in spring, players need gov't issued photo ID. But it did not say how the rule was to be enforced or when or by whom ID's would be examined. Do you have any more on that? Thanks.

What does the score have to be when an official sees that the losing team has no chance of winning and just ends the game?

Hi Ref,Player A1 dribbles then stops and holds the ball with both hands. Defensive player B1 smacks the ball from A1 causing it to hit the floor and bounce up to A1. What options does A1 have?

Login

Forgot Your Password?

Register

Varsity game. We are using a man defense. Their pg trips and faceplants into his defender' thigh, who gets a blocking foul. How did that happen?

One one possession he is dribbling when he trips, possibly on his teammate. He faceplants on his defende

Hi Ref,

Player A1 dribbles then stops and holds the ball with both hands. Defensive player B1 smacks the ball from A1 causing it to hit the floor and bounce up to A1. What options does A1 have?