It’s interesting… basketball is a sport whose fans are regularly heard to bitch about the refs “deciding the game” at the end, and the popular refrain is “let them play.” Honestly, I think that’s dumb. If you don’t want a foul called on you, don’t commit one.

“The refs shouldn’t be deciding the game”, is another way of phrasing this oft-heard complaint. It’s just another way of saying “Let teams cheat at the end of the game, because it’s more exciting that way.” It’s one thing to complain about bad calls or bad non-calls, it’s another to suggest that the refs should be more lenient at the end of the game because we get bored with free-throws. One has to keep in mind that for every no-call made at the end of the game in the name of keeping you entertained, there’s a team that’s being allowed to cheat (and another that’s getting hurt) because you can’t handle another 30 seconds of down-time.

Take a look at the refs “letting [UCLA] play” on the last shot of last night’s game: TexAgs.com Basketball Forums. Good thing the Refs didn’t decide the game, though, eh? That would’ve been boring.