NMI referees get good ratings during Games

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MI referees were lauded by FIBA Oceania for their consistency and professionalism while officiating the basketball competition in the 6th Micronesian Games.

According to tournament director Abner Venus, positive feedback was received from FIBA Oceania secretary general Steve Smith with regards to the five NMI referees that officiated during the Games."Our referees really got a very good rating," Venus said. "These referees that we always criticize. I think that is wrong. These officials worked really hard and it's not coming from me. It's from the secretary general of basketball and he's evaluating all our referees. Our referees performed better than the other countries".

With their game-calling getting positive attention from Smith, NMI referees were among those that were tasked with officiating the gold medal games.

Arnold Mesa officiated the women's final between the CNMI and Palau, while Gabriel White and Noel Delos Santos refereed the men's gold medal game between Palau and Guam.

"Steve does not play around. He knows who he can put in there. He was the one who selected who was going to referee based on his rating," he said.

Also refereeing from the NMI were Gilbert Espinosa, Eric Artillaga, and Jess Pacheco. There were also two referees from Guam, four from Palau, and one each from Yap, Chuuk, and the Marshall Islands.

"Refereeing is not that easy," said Venus, who is also a certified referee. "You and your partner only have four eyes and you have 10 people moving at the same time. It's not easy but the rating was really good. At least those guys tried their best and of course there's no such thing as a perfect game. These were all voluntary time. The referees did not even get paid.

"Venus added that he intends to create a committee that will evaluate the referees every six months or every year to ensure their performance will be in tip-top shape.

Prior to the Games, White and Mesa both had experiences refereeing in regional and international competition. Last year, White also officiated the gold medal game between Guam and New Caledonia during the South Pacific Mini Games in Palau, while Mesa recently refereed in a worldwide Masters competition.

Venus added that Espinosa and Artillaga also had great experiences and were certified by Smith during the recent Games."Gilbert didn't even start from Level I but Steve is giving him Level II, and Eric is now Level I," he said.