March 9, 2010 – The thing about basketball at “the world’s most famous arena” or basketball in New York in general, is the insistence that everything is the best, when it comes to “The City Game.” The trickle down goes from players to coaches, announcers and even to officials.

How many times do we have to hear how legendary and great referees Tim Higgins and Jim Burr are? Throughout the St. John’s – Rutgers Big East tournament game today, Higgins and Burr and their third, Earl Walton, made so many questionable calls that even the ESPN announcing team of Fran Fraschilla, Doris Burke and Dave Pasch began second guessing calls, especially as the game wound down to the final minute. For Higgins and Burr, where was ass kissing Bill Raftery when they needed him?

In the last minute of an otherwise entertaining, well fought Big East battle, Mike Coburn drove the lane through obvious contact, the referees call was as offensive as the home cookin’ they displayed all afternoon. The ball then went to St. Johns, a missed shot and scrum for the loose ball when a Red Storm player clobbered a Rutgers player from the back. St. Johns ball. This was followed by a half court baseball pass by Rutgers followed by a mugging, a walk, a step out of bounds with time on the clock, and the offending St. John’s player throwing the ball into the stands, which is usually a technical.

By this time, Burr was half way up the ramp to his dressing room, Higgins was probably trying to figure out how many things happened right in front of him without him blowing his whistle, and Walton folded like a cheap suit by deferring to his hall-of-fame partners.

Refs have a tough job. The truth is Higgins and Burr are as mediocre as they get, but somebody has to be called the best. This performance looked like an old fashioned “fix was in” but it was actually the kind of job they always do. Can’t wait for the list of guys in the game who come to Higgins’ and Burrs’ defense. Will Bob Knight lead the charge like he did yesterday for Jim Tressel?

Rumor has it that the refs left early because they had a date at a steakhouse with Jim Joyce.