retropop

Ugly it was, last night's 7th region championship. But an ugly win is much better than an artistic loss, especially at this time of the season. Congrats to the Lady Crimsons' players and coaches for a lengthened season, and to Assumption for a fine season, as well.

I agree with you in that I feel that it is Marion's to lose, just like I have said that the 8th region is Anderson's to lose. It's just that in the one-and-done reality of tournament time, bad breaks, bad landings, a twist or turn here or there can make the whole thing turn out different than planned because of players not being healthy enough to maintain what they've been doing all year. And since there is little time for making adjustments to go along with the tougher competition when a player goes out, the upset bug can sometimes jump up and bite the favorite.

I agree with you in that I feel that it is Marion's to lose, just like I have said all year that the 8th region is Anderson's to lose. It's just that in the one-and-done reality of tournament time, bad breaks, bad landings, a twist or turn here or there can make the whole thing turn out different than planned because of players not being healthy enough to maintain what they've been doing all year. And since there is little time for making adjustments to go along with the tougher competition when a player goes out, the upset bug can sometimes jump up and bite the favorite - and it can happen at any time. I'm neither a Marion Co. fan nor a hater, but the sound of "having an undefeated state champion" kinda/sorta has a special ring to it.

This certainly is not to wish anything bad upon anyone or any team. But "twists" of fate happen - injuries, illnesses, etc. To presume that the state final is a done deal, even though there definitely is a prohibitive favorite, is jumping the gun, IMO.

Congrats on the big win for Coach Simpson, staff and the South boys. It's great when nice guys get to finish first.

I'm being redundant, as I made this same point on another thread. For referees there is no accountability when they are calling post-season games out-of-region. The most effective referees manage game situations by being proactive and preventative in ther approach to calling games. This incident could have been - and should have been - avoided in the waning seconds of a tense game. When a coach is instictively/spontaneously standing up to address his/her instruct his team at the end of a big-time game, is this the really "right" call to make in a knee-jerk response? Sure, the rules state that the coach must sit down after receiving a technical, but any close observer of basketball games knows that discretionary application of the rules, i.e. judgement calls, are the true nature of the day. This outcome of suspension for multiple games, IMO, plainly stinks, and most likely would not have happened if in-region officials were used. IF justice is to be served, then the long-range implications of this poor call should be able to be successfuly appealed. But unfortunately, the KHSAA does not have a tradtion of overturning poor officiating decisions such as this, and I predict that the powers that be will most likely follow the "code" and stand behind the stripes and whistle yet another time - even when wrong. (However, I sincerely hope that my prediction is wrong.)

I'm being redundant, as I made this same point on another thread. For referees, there is no accountability when they are calling post-season games out-of-region. The most effective referees manage game situations by being proactive and preventative in ther approach to calling games. This incident could have been - and should have been - avoided in the waning seconds of a tense game. When a coach is instictively/spontaneously standing up to address his/her instruct his team at the end of a big-time game, is this the really "right" call to make in a knee-jerk response? Sure, the rules state that the coach must sit down after receiving a technical, but any close observer of basketball games knows that discretionary application of the rules, i.e. judgement calls, are the true nature of the day. This outcome of suspension for multiple games, IMO, plainly stinks, and most likely would not have happened if in-region officials were used. IF justice is to be served, then the long-range implications of this poor call should be able to be successfuly appealed. But unfortunately, the KHSAA does not have a tradtion of overturning poor officiating decisions such as this, and I predict that the powers that be will most likely follow the "code" and stand behind the stripes and whistle yet another time - even when wrong. (However, I sincerely hope that my prediction is wrong.)

Derby, you hit the nail squarely on the head.

"No accountablity" is the key point. Out-of-region officials are able to ride into town like hired gunslingers in an old John Wayne western. They do what they want, however they want, to whomever they want and then ride back out of town -- with a check for their "services" - all with zero accountability to those they are working with. These officials to not have to face those coaches again (unless they face the same coach/team from an outside region, in which case there is still no accountability), they are not rated by those coaches, nor can they be scratched by those coaches. Hiring out-of-region officials, to the best of my knowledge, is a way of taking care of referees who might not be able to officiate in the region tourneys due to scratches or being from the hometown/county of the participating schools. Granted, when staying in-region there are some highly-rated officials who might be excluded due to these restrictions, which makes for lesser quality persons calling the games. Plus there are quite a few coaches who welcome the fresh faces in stripes, but not all are for the swap-outs. No easy solutions exist, really, for the KHSAA - kind of a catch-22 situation. Still, there needs to be some tweaking of this to make it better - and having the officials be responsible and accountable to the coaches' ratings or scratches is something that needs to be addressed, in my opinion. As it now stands, the "good ol' boy/girl" arrangement is not in the best interest of the people who spend the better part of a year working on the team - players and coaches - but is benefitting the officials at the others' expense.

Yes, congrats to the Lady Pioneers. They must be playing very well at the right time. Can they get to Diddle?

Sportslady, the question really should not be how does South keep getting this particular referee, but instead how does this particular ref keep getting post-season assignments? The ref to whom you refer is the same one who played the key role in South's controversial loss to Shelby Co. in the 8th region tourney at Simon Kenton a few years ago. She also was a controversial figure in Rockcastle County's the near-riotous loss in the Sweet-16 one week afterward. I feel confident that it's not an anti-South thing, it's just a lack of ability and good judgement on the pressure-packed stage of a post-season basketball game.

Great duck - that's the only envy I have. I wish I had enough tech savvy to come up with such cool stuff. It is fantastic, really!

Game is in New Castle - not Winchester. This South squad will toughen up to win this game. A team of destiny - maybe???

Now I was not in the house tonight, so I cannot critique what went on tonight in Goshen. However I do have a pretty good feel for the last few 8th region tourneys. Other than last year, when the 9th region sent their crews to the 8th, there have been several recent years in which the 7th/6th region folks have called the 8th region tourney. As best as I can recall, they have not faired very well in any instance. I wonder how the swap-outs are received around the state. For my money, it's an attempt by the KHSAA to take care of officials that doesn't help the girls' basketball scene.

Hmmmmm ... this seems to be a recurring theme year and year out. I wonder why this WV stigma keep on lingering??? It can't be sour grapes over and over, especially this year, or can it??? I just can't help from relating this to the old duck analogy: If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it's probably a duck, right?

The supporting casts were the difference in this game, as SHA was the deeper and more versatile team overall. China Dow went out with a bang, though. What an absolutely fantastic performance she gave in her final high school game!

True, true, true, South is benefitting now from their early schedule. They are becoming better each game.

As I stated earlier in the year, it is Anderson's to lose.

Congrats to the SK-ers on their win, and let me be one of the early folks to say that the Lady Pioneers are in a good position to upset the favorite Anderson Co. Lady Bearcats in the 8th region tourney. They appear to be hot, healthy and on a roll of good fortune at the right time - but so is Anderson. It should be a good tourney.

Why did Destony Curry not play against Central in the district championship?

Goooooo Lady Dragons!!!! South's dominance of district 29 continues. Good luck in the region tourney.

If and when the game is in hand, the wise coach may follow his/her gut and choose to spread around PT to: 1) prevent injuries to front line players; 2) allow reserves and younger players some valuable experience for a future time. "Out of sync" maybe something to work through - on the game floor. Why risk wasting a key player to injury when not neccessary? It's about getting to Diddle, not running up a score in the district.

Wow!!! As the old saying goes: "The king is is dead, long live the king." The only certainty is that a different team will begin a new reign as 8th region champion shortly. WV has had a very good run the last few years and represented the region well. But all good things come to an end. I'm not a WV local and have not even seen them play this year. But sometimes, more so with girls than with boys, seniors mentally and emotionally divest themselves from their senior year and simply "move on" beyond the season and high school. I'm not saying that I know this is now the case, but it has been the case in several instances that I've witnessed in past years.

This year is the year of the Lady Birds! A season of bounce-backs from numerous adversities. Best of luck all the way to Diddle.

Agreed, the 7th is w i d e open. The 7th region is the most strongest and competitive in the state.