Attention in ABA League Finals turns to refs again: What happened? / News - Basketnews.com

The battle of Crvena Zvezda and Partizan once again focuses on referees. There is a far-reaching backstory of why it happens.

Credit: ABA League j.t.d./Dragana Stjepanovic Credit ABA League j.t.d./Dragana Stjepanovic

The ABA League Finals once again feature the battle of eternal enemies - Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade and Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade. Once again, the attention has turned to referees.

3-pointers this season

34%9,2Points made:9,2Accuracy:34,1%Place in standings:9Record max:17Record min:3Most made 3FGs:Nemanja NedovicTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

With the finals series having big implications for both clubs, the games usually get tense. Throughout recent years, there have been numerous occasions when games had to be temporarily stopped, as angry fans turned their anger toward referees.

Multiple reports have surfaced throughout the years of top-level referees refusing to officiate the Radivoj Korac Cup in Niš, where the two fanbases have the only chance to root for their teams in the same arena at the same time.

The ABA League Finals are not much different. Last year, a report surfaced about three highly-ranked referees refusing to work in the finals.

Before Game 1 of this year's Finals, a report came out that Crvena Zvezda contacted the league directly, claiming they would not be able to ensure the safety of the referees if the fans retaliated against them during either of their home games.

Game 3 of last year's Finals was delayed due to some fans' violent actions. While the all-deciding Game 5 went without incidents, the thought of something happening is at the back of everybody's minds all the time.

Both Crvena Zvezda and Partizan's head coaches, Ioannis Sfairopoulos and Zeljko Obradovic, have reiterated numerous times throughout the year for the fans to remain peaceful and not throw anything on the court, as it damages the image of the club, the club, and the fans themselves, as well as earns fines for the respective organizations.

This year, the attention to the referees turned already during Game 1.

Crvena Zvezda took the important victory, winning the matchup by a mere 3-point margin. The game featured 67 free throws, with Crvena Zvezda shooting 42 of them. There were some questionable calls during the game, with two moments when players received defensive fouls even though the offensive player slipped.

On Wednesday, May 15th, Partizan's president, Ostoja Mijailovic, announced Partizan contacted the league and asked for a review of all calls in Game 1, which lasted for more than two hours due to multiple reviews during the contest.

"Everyone saw what the refereeing was like against the city rival two days ago. Immediately, the next morning, we asked the ABA League for urgent refereeing expertise and we have nothing new to add to that," Mijailovic wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

On Friday, the story took another turn, as Partizan released a statement with the findings of the inquiry.

The black-and-whites announced that 8 wrong decisions were made in favor of Crvena Zvezda and two incorrect decisions were in favor of Partizan.

"The largest number of incorrect calls were during contact situations during drives where it was necessary to show more patience and not react with a call for contact that has no impact on the game," Partizan wrote.

Refereeing has been at the forefront of public attention in the EuroLeague recently, too. Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens wrote two protests after the Game 3 loss against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv, while the club's owner, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, openly bashed the officials on his Instagram.

The EuroLeague later announced that both decisions PAO protested against were correct.

During the playoffs, a scandalous story came out of top EuroLeague referee, Matej Boltauzer, who worked in the ABA League Finals last year, officiating in Games 2 and 4, stealing Tom Ford perfume and being detained at the Belgrade Airport in December.

With Crvena Zvezda leading the series 2:0, the referees working in Game 3 will have as much pressure as ever.

"Just as the players dream of winning the title, our dream is to referee matches for the title - the final, the fifth match, it's like a boy's dream," former referee Milan Mažić once told BBC.

The hope remains that the series will end without any incidents with the fans or game delays. History has shown, however, that it's a tall task.

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