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Incident shows some referees need more training I’m a grandfather and great grandfather who attends all my grandsons’ basketball games and many others. I’m also a former coach and referee. I witnessed a girls game recently — Bishop Carroll at Penn Cambria — that shocked me and all the other spectators. The referee was told he made a bad call on one of the players. I have to admit some people get caught up in the moment at these games, but the referees do make some obvious bad calls at times. So this referee stopped the game and made an entire section of spectators ...

In college sports, one size doesn’t suit all

By Jim Caltagirone For the Mirror Athletes and coaches do not always dictate the narrative of a sporting event. Sometimes the venue is a prominent player. That is especially apparent at Penn State these days. Whether a wrestling meet is held in Rec Hall or the Bryce Jordan Center, the atmosphere is immeasurably charged, despite significant differences in seating capacity and design. Rec Hall’s appeal is forged in nostalgia, tradition and the unique structural features of a building that is nearly 100 years old. The heat generated by a capacity crowd in Rec Hall is almost ...

USA Basketball feels confident

By Tim Reynolds The Associated Press USA Basketball put together different rosters for all six World Cup qualifying windows, and coach Jim Boylen noticed the same two things with each of those groups. One, every player beamed when putting on the “USA” jersey for picture day. Two, by the third or fourth day of practice, the players were coaching each other. It took 52 players and more than a year, but the job is done — USA Basketball is going to the World Cup in the Philippines this summer. The U.S. won’t have to sweat it out this weekend when the final spots in the 32-team ...

Boston taking greatness to next level

By Bill Contz For the Mirror Well sports’ biggest single-day spectacle, Super Bowl LVII, is now in the rearview mirror with Kansas City’s Chieftains reigning supreme over the rest of the NFL. Personally, my neck is still sore after watching both offenses go up and down the field for what seemed like the entire night. Edge-of-your-seat entertainment? No argument from me there. Now on to more pressing matters — namely has anyone been paying close attention to the phenomenon taking place in eastern Massachusetts? And no, I am not referring to the aggravation we collectively ...

Take that, all of you imaginary haters!

By Paul Newberry The Associated Press Forget the U.S. hockey team knocking off the mighty Soviets at the 1980 Winter Olympics. That shocking upset doesn’t come close to the Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl against all imaginary odds. Or the Georgia Bulldogs somehow capturing a second straight national championship that no one except everyone saw coming. Just listen to Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, elegantly addressing the supposedly staggering mountain his team climbed to claim its second Super Bowl title in four years. “Not one of y’all said the Chiefs were ...

LeBron’s greatness is no broken record

By Ira Kaufman For the Mirror Since LeBron James entered the NBA, I have had the privilege of personally witnessing most of his memorable games. So naturally, I flew across the country to be in a seat in the crypto.com arena on Tuesday night when James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record to become the NBA’s all-time scoring leader. Entering Tuesday night’s game, LeBron needed 36 points to pass Kareem. I felt that LeBron would try to get the record on Tuesday night at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder, instead of waiting until Thursday night against the Milwaukee ...