Block or Charge or Double Foul?

by **Majik45** » February 14th, 2013, 8:29 am

I thought this deserved it's own topic as it was the most bizarre call I've ever seen in a basketball game last night. Midway through the second half of the BU ISU game, Walt Lemon drove toward the lane and elevated for a running floater/finger roll at the free throw line. Jon Ekey was there guarding his man and took a step over to take a charge. Personally I think Ekey moved in slightly after Walt had left the ground, but it was a fairly close block/charge call.

One Ref had the play as a charge, one ref had the play as a block. They get together to discuss which it was, and decided to call a double foul, on both Ekey and Lemon. Has anyone ever seen this call before? It was the most bizarre thing I have ever seen and the most ridiculous. I would have rather them ruled it a charge then call it a double foul.

They then originally rule to give the ball to the team who had possession of the ball when the foul occurred and give it to ISU (even though ISU never had the ball during the play, as Lemon was driving, and the shot hit the backboard and Egolf of BU got the rebound). They then rule what I assume is the correct ruling that it should be a jump ball and give the ball to ISU.

It was so the dumbest thing I have ever seen. Other than that call, I had no problem with the refs last night, they were very good.

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by **kochhead22** » February 14th, 2013, 8:53 am

I believe this same call has actually been called during two of WSU's games this year. Pretty sure one was involving Jake White and can't think of the other one.

by **cpacmel** » February 14th, 2013, 9:25 am

It's called a blarge: http://gsoa.org/basketball/blarge09.pdf

It happened last season in the Alabama / Kentucky game: http://kentucky.scout.com/2/1150245.html

by **BCPanther** » February 14th, 2013, 9:52 am

Iowa State/Michigan State Elite 8 in 2000.

Totally changed the game, took all momentum from Iowa State and was a huge factor in Michigan State winning the game.

The best part is that it was one official who called it immediately. No consultation...

by **Majik45** » February 14th, 2013, 10:11 am

cpacmel wrote:It's called a blarge: http://gsoa.org/basketball/blarge09.pdf

Wow, I guess you learn something new every day.

by **cpacmel** » February 14th, 2013, 10:25 am

Majik45 wrote:
cpacmel wrote:It's called a blarge: http://gsoa.org/basketball/blarge09.pdf

Wow, I guess you learn something new every day.

Me too Majik. When it happened, I texted like 5 guys wondering if they had ever seen such a thing before. None of them had.

by **unipanther99** » February 14th, 2013, 10:58 am

By the book, that's what they have to do --- but it's basically one of those things every ref dreads. You work hard at mechanics and positioning to try to prevent this. It's kind of like King Solomon's solution to cut the baby in half.

by **RoyalShock** » February 14th, 2013, 2:11 pm

unipanther99 wrote:. . . It's kind of like King Solomon's solution to cut the baby in half.

Except that the baby belongs to neither party and the king (refs) actually does cut the baby in half.

To confirm kochhead22's memory, the blarge had indeed been called in two WSU games this season. The only two times I've seen or heard of it.

by **purple&orange** » February 15th, 2013, 4:11 am

I've seen it a couple times, it's a terrible way to legislate the play by just calling both. Why not a do over instead, makes just as much sense.

In the course of the game a foul would override another call, like a jump ball. If one official had a jump but the other has a foul, the foul is called. To me it's on the defense to draw the charge, therefore if one official has it as a charge and another has a block, the block is the call. Either that or make it a position call. Most block/charge calls take place close to the rim, so let the official underneath on the baseline be the one that makes the call, regardless of how it turns out.

It's a bad situation, however they can't go back and look at it on the monitor so I'd just put it in the rules that it's on the defense to be in legal guarding position to draw a charge and in a case where two officials differ on the block/charge call, a block will be called because one official felt the defender never established that legal guarding position.