Kinda rummaging around the Net today as I prepare to head to Los Angeles for the weekend, I saw this blog post concerning a YouTube video that a pissed-off person in Washington State made to force the state high school athletic association to either sanction the player/s involved or get competent officials before someone gets hurt or worse.
It is a compilation of believed "flagrant fouls" in a game between Connell and Highland high schools in Washington State on December 22, 2011.
So let's take a look at these fouls.
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First foul: A Highland (in red with gray numbers) player, off the screen, comes into the lane. You can't get a very good look at it, because the play is almost off the screen to the right. However, you can see #34 for Connell (in white with gold numbers -- Cole Vanderbilt (listed at 6'3" and TWO HUNDRED EIGHTY POUNDS)) commit a fairly hard hack foul on the driving player. He doesn't appear to leave his feet nor make any real motion to make a play, save taking a hard swat with clobbers both arms of the Highland player (#30?), while bumping him to the ground.
I don't see that as a flagrant foul, but I do think it's a hard foul and the officials should've made sure that Vanderbilt didn't do it again under any circumstances. I think a second foul of that variety should've resulted in his expulsion from the contest.
(Not to mention that Vanderbilt looks about 21 or 22 years old. Both of the players involved, according to the Tri-City Herald, were offensive linemen on the state championship football team. The guy appears completely unable to take to the air and remain "straight-up-and-down".)
Second foul (0:45): Connell player shoots about an 18-foot jump shot, which is missed and rebounded by #20 from Highland on the near side of the basket. #42 from Connell, Keenan VanHollenbeeke (listed at 6'4" and 235 pounds) reaches around fairly hard and swats the ball out of his hands and gets a foul called.
To whomever made the video and posted it on YouTube: That's a hard reach-in, and happens all the freaking time. That's a foul which can happen several times a game. That's not a flagrant foul. Personal foul, walk the floor, shoot the bonus, and play on. I can understand that you would like to see that kind of foul not happen, but that would have to change how a lot of those things happen on plays like that.
Third foul (1:33): After a couple of passes, #24 of Highland gets the ball just outside the three-point line at the top of the key. He dribble-drives down into the lane, where #42 of Connell is again, as he swings his arm and decks the Highland player to the floor with a fairly strong arm to the head.
That should've been all for VanHollenbeeke. That was a flagrant foul, probably a Flagrant-2 under the NBA rules. VanHollenbeeke should've been tossed right then and there, and I'm somewhat surprised someone didn't start at least a scrum-style situation, because those are the kinds of fouls which can start fights. Credit to the Highland players for not doing so -- just surprised it didn't happen.
But that was a completely flagrant foul and he should've been expelled from the contest right then and there. You cannot allow a player to flail his arms like that in the approximation of "making a play". That was a dirty foul, and he should've been tossed.
Fourth foul (2:13): We're under the offensive basket (all these fouls, according to the Tri-City Herald, occur within the first ten minutes of the contest!!), and Highland gets an offensive rebound, #24 again. He goes up to shoot a layup, misses it, and it appears as if VanHollenbeeke gets the rebound for Connell, only for #24 to slap it out of his hands, no call, apparently clean.
A scramble for the ball occurs, and VanHollenbeeke openly shoves #34 to the ground as he tries to shield VanHollenbeeke from getting the ball.
Shouldn't have even been in the game to do this, as he should've been tossed for the other foul of his. But that's at least a Flagrant-1.
Fifth Foul (2:53): Presumed the worst of the bunch in the Yahoo! blog article.
#30 is dribbling down the court for Highland. He decides, upon seeing an open lane, to drive the lane. He takes a CLOTHESLINE from Vanderbilt.
A straight-up fucking CLOTHESLINE. No effort is made to play the ball.
And the referee calls the foul a HOLD...
If I'm reffing, he's gone -- so is the coach for failing to control his players!!
The whole point of me actually discussing this is not that I feel this game was rigged. The point of me discussing this is that this is what CAN happen when a dirty referee or a compromised official involves themselves in a game and deliberately ignores fouls and penalties to manipulate a certain result or storyline.
I do not believe that was the case here. I believe this officiating crew is dangerously incompetent and should not referee again without a long course in how to officiate a basketball game.
But when a compromised official gets involved in his chicanery, things like this can result from the deliberate ignorance of the rules of the game and the sportsmanship required.
That was Vanderbilt's third foul of the first quarter, and you saw two of them.
All five of these fouls occurred in the FIRST QUARTER!
Sixth foul (4:42): Now, finally, in the second quarter.
Highland player drives the middle, almost (if not) gets fouled driving the middle of the court. Passes to an open player under the basket (#12). Layup, no good, rebounded by Highland's #34 and here's Vanderbilt again, with his fourth foul of the game (in ten minutes), reaching over the top and knocking the kid to the ground.
A hard over-the-back call, but it's moot by this point.
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This is what can happen when officials have their own agendas. You let things get this out of control, and all Hell can break loose. We are fortunate this game didn't turn into a brawl, or even someone coming out of the stands to go after the kids.
For the record, Connell actually defeats Highland by a single point, 38-37 -- and there was some trash-talking in the game as well, according to the Tri-City Herald. VanHollenbeeke actually scored the game-winner with about 90 seconds left.
There is no word, as of this time, if the Washington State high school association has suspended the two players (now branded the dirtiest in America -- a stretch, IMHO, for VanHollenbeeke, but Vanderbilt is up there!), but the school will not. The coach has stated his players and he are behind the players.
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