The precipitous decline in college basketball officials’ ability to call the most basic violation in basketball – the travelling violation – is a topic we have discussed here for years.
So, I couldn’t resist an entry this morning when I came across the video below that highlights both the utter incompetence of ACC (and college basketball officiating) AND the ‘coincidence’ that it features Coach K’s Duke Blue Devils playing in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
If anyone has watched CJ Leslie get whistled for deserving (and undeserving) travel calls in nanosecond speed this year…please tell me what you think of the double standard of this?
As it specifically relates to Austin Rivers and Duke – I think it is safe to say that Rivers gets away with AT LEAST two or three of these a game. Could you imagine the impact on a season of games if Duke had AT LEAST that many more turnovers (and therefore no points on those possessions) per game? What about the intangible and immeasurable impact on Rivers’ (and the rest of the Blue Devils’ psyche)
What is REALLY confusing is that John Clougherty and the ACC officials SUPPOSEDLY watch for tendencies in players, right? If you don’t remember this, then please click here. Why is it that I think the ACC’s ‘tendency watching’ is centered on confirming calls that are made by officials, thereby only serving to re-inforce the ineptitude on the court as opposed to discerningly watching the game tapes looking for MISSED calls. Just because a player isn’t getting called for fouls doesn’t mean the player isn’t fouling. It doesn’t take a genius to understand how quickly the cycle of incompetence self perpetuates.
#protecttheblues
…Next up?…
…I can’t wait for some Duke fans to pull together some videos of Tyler Hansbrough’s four years of traveling, charging, and bulldozing through the ACC. In the event you forgot about this classic from Bobby Knight:
Lastly…in case you think this is just an Austin Rivers issue…please allow me to share the following:
