Referees Missed Old Dominion Having 6 Players On The Court During A Game With Major NCAA Tournament Implications

I understand that being a referee can be difficult at times.

But that doesn't mean they aren't free from criticism, especially when there's MULTIPLE officials all looking at the same thing and still screwing up.

Last night was a colossal screw up on one of the most basic rules of the game - how many players are actually allowed to play at once.

Old Dominion University's women's basketball team was hosting Troy University in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. With just a few seconds remaining and up by one, ODU had the inbound pass.

However, as you hear from the stunned announcers who were calling out that there were SIX players on the court, none of the officials caught it. ODU would score the basket and win.

If the referees did their job, it would have resulted in a technical foul against ODU for too many players. Troy would have gotten a free throw to be able to tie and also receive possession of the ball. Instead, they loss outright because of the refs unable to count beyond 5.

OLD DOMINION ADVANCED IN THE SUN BELT TOURNAMENT

It's one thing to lose. However, it's a hell of a lot worst when the referees didn't do the one thing they're supposed to; enforce the actual rules.

Woops! Oh well! If Troy misses out on the NCAA Tournament by one game, I'm sure the "I'm sorry" half-assed apology from the referees last night will make up for these kid's dreams being crushed.

SELECTION SUNDAY IS MARCH 12TH

As I've argued countless times, until there is a punishment for referees, umpires and officials that fail to perform their duty by accurately calling games, then nothing will be done. When you or I mess up at our jobs, we are reprimanded. That rarely happens in professional sports leagues.

When you add the prospect of sports betting and massive sportsbook partnerships going on, professional sports leagues that love preaching about the "integrity of the game," have an obligation to go up and beyond to make sure the officials are calling things fair.

The fact that 3 referees didn't notice 6 Old Dominion players during a tournament where the winner gets an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, is absurd.