This is not a “blame the refs” post. This is not a personal attack. I am not even implying the outcome of our last game, our Sweet Sixteen matchup vs. UT on March 28, would have been different. I am simply curious about the assignment of referees in the NCAA Tournament.
Doug Shows, Lamar Simpson and Brian Dorsey officiated the game. Thanks to @JPScott we have an extensive history of referees for UK games.
Among active referees who have called more than 3 of our games, Brian Dorsey is the referee with the lowest winning percentage for UK at 33.3% (4-8).
[Eric Curry and Larry Spaulding also have this 33.3% percentage, but they have only officiated 3 of our games, most recently 2021 and 2022, respectively. Frank Harvey and Edwin Young only officiated a single game each in 2022 that we lost, so their 0% is not relevant for my question. For examples of how far below the norm this 33.3% is, our winning percentages under now-retired John Higgins was 44.4% (iykyk), and still-active Keith Kimble (UNC 2017) is 47.6%, and those are among the lowest compared to others.]
By the stats, for every three games Dorsey officiates, we will likely lose two. This past season, of the 4 games he officiated, we won 2 (WKU and Illinois) and lost 2 (Ohio State and UT, both paired with D Shows). Dorsey was also on the whistle last year when we lost to Oakland, and in 2019 when we lost to Auburn in the Elite 8 in OT.
UT won all four of their Dorsey-officiated games this season (Montana, Norfolk State, LSU, UK).
Did those making the assignments know they assigned an official where UK statistically loses more of the time than with any other official? If yes, why would such an assignment be made in an important game like this? If no, I wonder if this is ever a factor for any team with a similar officiating history?
I don’t know if history is taken into account for assignments; does anyone here know or have insight into this process? I’m genuinely curious.
Doug Shows, Lamar Simpson and Brian Dorsey officiated the game. Thanks to @JPScott we have an extensive history of referees for UK games.
Among active referees who have called more than 3 of our games, Brian Dorsey is the referee with the lowest winning percentage for UK at 33.3% (4-8).
[Eric Curry and Larry Spaulding also have this 33.3% percentage, but they have only officiated 3 of our games, most recently 2021 and 2022, respectively. Frank Harvey and Edwin Young only officiated a single game each in 2022 that we lost, so their 0% is not relevant for my question. For examples of how far below the norm this 33.3% is, our winning percentages under now-retired John Higgins was 44.4% (iykyk), and still-active Keith Kimble (UNC 2017) is 47.6%, and those are among the lowest compared to others.]
By the stats, for every three games Dorsey officiates, we will likely lose two. This past season, of the 4 games he officiated, we won 2 (WKU and Illinois) and lost 2 (Ohio State and UT, both paired with D Shows). Dorsey was also on the whistle last year when we lost to Oakland, and in 2019 when we lost to Auburn in the Elite 8 in OT.
UT won all four of their Dorsey-officiated games this season (Montana, Norfolk State, LSU, UK).
Did those making the assignments know they assigned an official where UK statistically loses more of the time than with any other official? If yes, why would such an assignment be made in an important game like this? If no, I wonder if this is ever a factor for any team with a similar officiating history?
I don’t know if history is taken into account for assignments; does anyone here know or have insight into this process? I’m genuinely curious.
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