One need not be a very astute observer of the women's game today to fully grasp the fact that what we Neanderthals used to refer to as "girl's basketball" is rapidly evolving into something of a free-for-all. 'Tain't no dainty affair out there! The banging that we routinely witness on the floor is obviously reflective of pre-planned strategies that, like it or not, have simply become a part of today's game. Obviously, this renders the job of those who officiate the games infinitely more difficult...they can, if they wish, legitimately call way more fouls than they do, or they can elect not to. In most games, early on in those contests, it is apparent that the refs have either subscribed to a "let them play" attitude or are determined to take control, sometimes too aggressively, by calling everything in sight...which tends, alas, to ruin such games.
Last night's game vs Syracuse offers a good example of what I mean. I thought Nika was sensational in defending Syracuse's top scorer. Now, did she tend to have her hands all over that kid? You betcha! Had they so desired, the refs could have fouled Nika out in the first half! She didn't play dirty...she doesn't do that. But, tough-as-nails as she is, she defended with unabashed aggression.
The "plea" in the title of this thread is as follows: I beg my fellow posters on this forum to desist from constantly whining about officiating. Do blown calls affect the outcomes of games one way or the other? Of course they do...but not nearly so much as missed open shots, egregious turnovers, failing to box out, etc. And the calls, good and/or bad, tend to inevitably go both ways. According to their fans, a rival program from a school in Indiana has never actually lost a basketball game. On those occasions when they're on the wrong end of the final score, the refs were clearly against 'em. I hope we don't fall prey to that mentality. Show me a game our favorite team lost because of the refs...I'l show you a litany of blown plays by our team that were the true culprits. The whining doesn't become us, and, frankly, it's misplaced!