Three better than two for state hoops

It started about 10-11 years ago, Lake City boys basketball coach/athletic director Jim Winger said.

John Posnick, the District I basketball commissioner — the man who is in charge and assigns the referees to games — broached the idea of using a three-man officiating crew, instead of the usual two, for the Fight for the Fish spirit basketball games.

Then the idea for three-man mechanics expanded to some of the bigger league games in 5A and 4A, then eventually to all 5A and 4A league games in District 1.

“We’ve always advocated for it. We always thought it was coming,” Winger said of using three officials. “It was one of the top priorites of John Billetz (the former Post Falls High principal, who retired in 2014 after eight years as executive director of the Idaho High School Activities Association). But as a league, we were getting a little leery that this wasn’t going to happen.”

THAT’S WHY North Idaho coaches and referees were pleasantly surprised Tuesday, when the IHSAA voted to move the proposal for using three-man officiating crews at the state boys and girls basketball tournaments from the “discussion” stage to the “action agenda” stage for the next board meeting in December.

There will inevitably be more discussion at that meeting, where the board could vote to approve the proposal as a “first reading,” then vote again to make it official as a “final reading” and January’s board meeting.

If passed, three-man crews would be used for all state basketball tournament games beginning with the 2019 state tourneys.

It’s still not a done deal; lots of backroom politicking can happen between now and then. But at least it’s being talked about. Idaho, we were told at the IHSAA meeting Tuesday at The Coeur d’Alene Resort, is the only state left still using two-man officiating crews.

Change is hard.

Ty Jones, in his fourth year as IHSAA executive director, surveyed athletic directors statewide for their thoughts on three-man officiating crews at state.

5A and 4A schools were overwhelming in favor of the idea, he said. The smaller schools were less in favor.

It would be up to each district whether they wanted to use two-man or three-man crews during the season and state-qualifying tournaments. But you’d think districts would opt to have the same amount of refs during the season as they would see at state.

“There’s a huge difference between two-man mechanics and three-man,” Winger said. “You go to state (where it’s two-man mechanics) and it’s a bloodbath.”

COST IS an issue commonly cited by smaller schools against adding a third official. District 1 officials enjoy three-man mechanics enough to charge the schools a little bit less for those games. Rather than paying full price for all three refs (currently $61 a game), District 1 refs charge the school the fee for 2 1/2 refs, then divvy up that amount equally.

Recruiting new officials and retaining them is difficult. Posnick told the board, of his top 25 refs, 15 are age 45 and older.

“With the three-man game, I can keep officials working longer,” Posnick said. “It’s time Idaho did this. It’s way past time.”

Last spring, frustrated by the lack of movement on three-man officials at the state level, 5A and 4A schools in District 1 voted to go back to two-man crews for this coming basketball season.

Why play with three refs during the season, then go to state and have games called differently by two-man crews, they reasoned.

With the IHSAA’s decision Tuesday, local 5A and 4A ADs said they might consider going back to three-man mechanics for league games — even though, if the IHSAA approves, it’s still a year away at the state level.

But at least it’s a start.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter@CdAPressSports.