On the eve of Halloween the KL Dragons received a treat by winning their second straight game, after routing the Brunei Barracudas 87 – 48. The game ended by default with 7:55 remaining in the 4th quarter, when all but two Brunei players fouled out of the contest.The KL Dragons’ Nakiea Miller recorded his second straight double-double. He scored 16 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. While Alex Hartman rained in shoots to the tune of 24 points to go along side his 7 rebounds. He led all scorers on the evening.
The Dragons’ efforts have moved them from the #5 position to the #4 spot in the ABA, after they started the season 0 – 3. A win against their next opponents, Satria Muda BritAma, would even their win to losses and place them back into the hunt for the play-offs.
While the game was a success for the Dragons, it was a disaster for the referees. I’m not exaggerating, when I say,
“it was the worst officiated basketball game I have ever seen in my life;
professional or amateur”.
There were blatant fouls committed by both teams that were ignored or just unnoticed. But there seemed to be no end to the tic-tac fouls being called as though there was a fire sale on them. Incidental contact that does not impede a player’s progress should be seen as ‘good hustle’; not a foul. On the other hand the refs should have been blowing their whistles in synchronized harmony when Hartman, a Dragons’ player, got wrapped to the groin area, and again when William, a Barracudas’ player, was slapped across the face.
Worst than the botched calls was the apparent fact that the refs had no idea as to what the rules are when a team is down to 5 eligible players, and then one of the players fouls out to leave them with just 4. In the case of this game the officials allowed the Barracudas' squad to dwindle to 2 players, before a halt was finally put to the ridicules episode. Maybe the ABA doesn’t have a rule concerning this situation. I’m not sure what sanctioned rules the league has adopted. But I do know how it would have been handled in the NBA and WNBA which is as follows:
In the NBA and WNBA, if a team is reduced to five players and one commits a sixth foul, that player must stay in the game; one additional free throw is awarded to the opposing team. Even if there are no free throws to be awarded because of an offensive foul, the one free throw will be added irrespective of offensive or defensive foul. A one-free throw penalty will also be awarded if said team has a player who must leave the game after being injured, and has no legal substitutes; the last player to foul out rejoins the game with the one free throw penalty. Thus, no team can be reduced to four players in those leagues.
The bottom line is that if particular ABA officials don’t know the rules of basketball and/or how to administer them, they have no business being on the court. Do your damn jobs refs!
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