Permanent refs in UAAP?

UAAP commissioner Chito Loyzaga is swamped by complaints from officials representing schools in the varsity league about the poor level of officiating so far in the league but he’s not fazed. Loyzaga isn’t shirking from his responsibility of making sure the referees are above board, qualified and ready to run when their number is called.

It’s Loyzaga’s first year on the job and while he’s a rookie, the former PBA player knows what basketball is all about especially when it comes to fair play. If there are referees out to make things happen on the court, he’ll be the first to spot them. He’s been around in the game too long to be fooled by scalawags disguised as whistle-blowers.

Loyzaga recently slapped a three-game suspension on a referee for allegedly deciding the outcome of a game. The suspension was upgraded to three more games when the UAAP Board discovered the same referee had been docked for lapses in the past. Whether or not the referee was guilty as charged is subject to debate. The call was made when the ball wasn’t in play and the defensive player was whistled for bodying up on a prospective recipient of an inbound in the last two minutes of the game. Under UAAP rules, a team with a player whistled for a foul when the ball isn’t in play in the last two minutes is immediately assessed a penalty of two free throws and possession. Some watchers said it should’ve been a no-call but clearly, there was contact and a player was put at a disadvantage and another at an advantage because of the contact. Others said the offensive player should’ve been called instead for initiating the contact. It came down to a judgment call and the referee who blew his whistle got the axe from both Loyzaga and the UAAP Board for supposedly deciding the outcome.

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Loyzaga took an extra step in adjudicating the issue by apologizing to the team aggrieved in the situation. Was it called for? Was it a “consuelo de bobo” out of respect for the host school? What message to the referees did the apology deliver and would it have mattered if no apology was given? Did it therefore mean that the other team didn’t deserve to win? Since the win wasn’t forfeited and no replay was ordered, the apology left a lot of watchers wondering what was the point.

There is a lot of talk about heavy betting in the college game. Millions of pesos are rumored to be changing hands after every game with betting stations in Binondo, Pampanga and Cebu. If that’s the case, what’s the police doing about it? Is betting a reason why some games are officiated suspiciously? In one UAAP game, a team was favored to win by three and with about six minutes left, went up by 10. Suddenly, the referees began calling it tight against the leading team, allowing the other team to come back with a string of free throws on flimsy contact. In the end, the favored team lost because of the momentum shift. Shouldn’t the referees’ attention been called in the game? The winning team wound up taking 24 free throws and the loser, 11. The margin of difference in the end was two points.

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Apparently, bettors just don’t gamble on which team wins but on the point spread. That allows shady characters not to compromise which team wins but only by how much a team wins. Of course, it’s a small consolation because you never know what could happen in a game where point spreads are under management.

Referees should be above suspicion and Loyzaga said it’s time for the UAAP to consider hiring full-timers like in the PBA. With a permanent pool of referees, the UAAP will be better able to police the ranks and purge wrongdoers. It will require a hefty investment, said Loyzaga, but if that’s what it takes to clean up and reestablish credibility in the league, then maybe it’s time to bite the bullet. One team official said an investment of P2 million from each school should get the ball rolling in the right direction. This would mean paying referees industry-standard salaries, regular video evaluation sessions, a rigid training regimen, close monitoring and continuing upgrade of knowledge.

Theoretically, the college game is more vulnerable to fixes because players aren’t salaried and referees don’t make big money. Because of the nature of the college game, fixers shouldn’t find it difficult to reach out to conspirators. It’s not like in the PBA where players and referees stand to lose their lifelines if they’re caught doing wrong. If that’s the situation, then Loyzaga should quietly seek assistance from police to look out for wrongdoers in the same way the late PBA commissioner Rudy Salud cleaned up the pro league in the tumultuous ‘80s.