By ERIK BOLAND
The recently retired Bob Knight once referred to officials as the most protected group of individuals in America.
Former Georgetown coach John Thompson over a decade ago inquired why a 19 or 20-year-old had to address the media after a close loss and answer questions regarding two missed free throws or a critical mistake, while officials answered to no one.
Both coaches’ musings were mostly dismissed as the rantings of notorious ref-baiters, but every once in a while Knight and Thompson’s comments come to mind. Such as after Georgetown’s 55-53 victory over Villanova last night when Thompson’s son, John Thompson III, was the beneficiary of a call by Bob Donato, a pretty good official for the most part, that required some explaining.
The game looked as if it was headed for overtime as Georgetown’s Jonathan Wallace had the ball deep in the backcourt, the score tied at 53 and the seconds ticking. On the left sideline, Wallace received a slight bump by Villanova’s Corey Stokes.
Tweeeeeet.
Donato called Stokes for a foul, 70 feet from the basket, with one-tenth of a second left. Wallace hit both free throws for a 55-53 Georgetown victory. There’s an old basketball expression that says a foul in the first minute of a game is a foul in the last minute, too.
Whatever.
The call against Stokes wouldn’t have passed muster had it occurred 30 seconds into the game, let alone with one-tenth of a second left in a tie game.
All the relevant parties talked afterward, except Donato, who didn’t have to talk to anyone.
Wallace, so shaken by the contact he later referred to as a “nudge”, simply said, “a call’s a call.”
“I was just playing defense, and the ref called a foul,” Stokes said.
Said Villanova coach Jay Wright: “I can’t complain about it because I didn't see it.”
Difficult to determine if Wright was engaging in some ambiguity there, but overall coaches rarely criticize officials in public. Fines from the NCAA will follow. Accountability for officials doesn’t.
Officials have a difficult job, one where a nightly toil in anonymity is a badge of honor. They shouldn’t be forced to meet with the press after every close game but last night’s disgraceful ending left at least one question unanswered. And the only one qualified to answer it wasn’t talking.