court, adding to the job of the official. Further complicating the job of an official is the proximity to the crowds. Unlike football or baseball, the crowd is nearly always located within a few feet of the official, as are coaches and other players on the bench. To combat this, officials are able to remove a fan from the arena with an ejection. Duties The duties of the basketball referee are exactly this: to ensure the game is played safely and fairly. The referee enforces the rules of the game and in a game will make hundreds of decisions—determining when a violation or foul occurs and then stopping the game to issue the correct penalty. Violations When a violation occurs, game action is immediately stopped. These include traveling, illegal dribbles, out-of-bounds, and other violations. The official is required to blow the whistle and immediately stop play and award the ball over to the opposing team, thereby allowing for fair play in the game. Along with those, during a game, contact fouls can occur that, if called, will result in the opponent getting two shots from the free-throw line. References Sports officiating Basketball personnel