Do LA Teams Have The Refs Hypnotized?

Another look at the last play of that UCLA-Texas A&M game that you may not have seen. I know that the rule of thumb among college basketball officials is that if a shooter is hit with two or fewer arrows during the last 30 seconds of play, then you should "let the players decide the game." Now, if the beer bottle had hit him (thankfully it missed), or the dog had been biting a more vital area, then perhaps a foul would have been called. It's hard to say.

Meanwhile, Awful Officiating asks the musical question, why do refs love LA teams so much? It even seems to extend to the NBA, as Golden State of Mind points out, where the Lakers beat the Warriors on Monday on a questionable call at the end.

4 Seconds Left: Inbound pass set in Faker territory. This is it. The last play of the game. Nellie's timeout prepped the team to tie it or shoot a 3 for the win. As the whistle blew and the players wrestled for position ... the unthinkable happened. Fisher fell to the ground grabbing Monta with him, and the ref Delaney, blew the whistle calling an offensive foul.

For those claiming that it's all a vast conspiracy, I ask, why would anyone go to all that trouble? I'm also not a proponent of the "officiating is getting worse" theory. A more likely explanation is that basketball at the upper levels has just become impossible to officiate; players are too fast and too big. I propose a rule change in which coaches can challenge plays like in the NFL. Lose a challenge, lose a time out. Or a scholarship. Whatever.

And consider this: If John Wooden has this much mystical power now, imagine what he's going to be able to do when he's dead.

RECAP: Warriors 119, Lakers 123: Revenge Of The Fakers [Golden State Of Mind] The Officials Love LA! [Awful Officiating] Those Bruins Are A Charmed Bunch [Deadspin]