Blaming the refs. It’s a time-honored tradition of aggrieved fans who believe their team was preyed upon by not only the opposing squad but also by the boys in stripes who by nature of their job, are loved by no one.
Of course, most of the time this grousing is just sour grapes whining by the losing squad’s fans who willingly look past all of the poor play and bad decisions that could have impacted the game far more than the officials. Then other times, the refs just suck and suck hard.
Such is the case in the recent Mizzou versus Florida game, where phantom fouls and overactive whistles altered both the course of the game and the style of play. It hasn’t just been the case in one game this season. There must have been an unreported SEC officials meeting down in Birmingham prior to this season where Jeremiah Tilmon was deemed the second coming of Shaquille O’Neal and it was agreed upon by all, that any motion of his enormous and powerful limbs is in violation of league rules. All season long, he has been the victim of foul calls while he stands motionless under the basket with his arms outreached to the heavens. This league decision was recognized fully by the officials in Columbia over the weekend.
Of course, most of the time this grousing is just sour grapes whining by the losing squad’s fans who willingly look past all of the poor play and bad decisions that could have impacted the game far more than the officials. Then other times, the refs just suck and suck hard.
Such is the case in the recent Mizzou versus Florida game, where phantom fouls and overactive whistles altered both the course of the game and the style of play. It hasn’t just been the case in one game this season. There must have been an unreported SEC officials meeting down in Birmingham prior to this season where Jeremiah Tilmon was deemed the second coming of Shaquille O’Neal and it was agreed upon by all, that any motion of his enormous and powerful limbs is in violation of league rules. All season long, he has been the victim of foul calls while he stands motionless under the basket with his arms outreached to the heavens. This league decision was recognized fully by the officials in Columbia over the weekend.
This was Jeremiah Tilmon’s 5th foul. pic.twitter.com/OEWEHruks0
— Carrington Harrison (@cdotharrison) January 6, 2018
Trash calls by trash officials don’t just give the other team extra free throws and put your team in foul trouble, they change the way teams play. This is especially true with a Cuonzo Martin coached team. Martin’s style of play is centered on hard-nosed aggressive defense. When your team is routinely penalized for playing tough, it neuters the game plan.
So it is no surprise that the 2017-18 Mizzou Tigers have given up leads late into games. They are required to take their foot off the gas to avoid arbitrary and random fouls, much less well-earned hard fouls that naturally arise from aggressive play.
Because of how awful the officiating was against Florida, it can be easy to forget just how atrocious the officiating was just a game before at South Carolina. The phantom fouls were everywhere but it was somewhat easier to swallow since the Gamecocks were the victim of some of these goofball calls as well. That’s not just officiating. That’s just evenly distributed bad officiating.
We can only hope that behind the scenes Cuonzo Martin is ripping a new asshole into the SEC home offices in Birmingham. This crap cannot continue. I’m not asking for the Michael Jordan treatment where every walk and slap on the arm is ignored. Just let the guys play, assholes.
So it is no surprise that the 2017-18 Mizzou Tigers have given up leads late into games. They are required to take their foot off the gas to avoid arbitrary and random fouls, much less well-earned hard fouls that naturally arise from aggressive play.
Because of how awful the officiating was against Florida, it can be easy to forget just how atrocious the officiating was just a game before at South Carolina. The phantom fouls were everywhere but it was somewhat easier to swallow since the Gamecocks were the victim of some of these goofball calls as well. That’s not just officiating. That’s just evenly distributed bad officiating.
We can only hope that behind the scenes Cuonzo Martin is ripping a new asshole into the SEC home offices in Birmingham. This crap cannot continue. I’m not asking for the Michael Jordan treatment where every walk and slap on the arm is ignored. Just let the guys play, assholes.
