Be the Referee: Basketball Timeout

By Brent Rice
MHSAA Assistant Director

February 10, 2022

Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.

Below is this week's segment – Basketball Timeout - Listen

We are on the basketball court today where a wild pass from the point guard is headed out of bounds. A teammate jumps and is just barely able to catch the pass, but his momentum is carrying him out of bounds before he lands. While still airborne, and in possession of the ball, he calls time out.

Should the official grant him the time out – or is he out of bounds, with possession going to the defending team?

Since the player jumped from inbounds, gained possession, and called timeout before touching down out of bounds – the time out should be granted. His acrobatic play and quick thinking saved his team from committing a turnover, and they’ll inbound the basketball after a 60-second break.

Previous editions

Feb. 3: Basketball Video Review - Listen
Jan. 27: Wrestling Inspections - Listen
Dec. 16: Ball Over Backboard - Listen
Dec. 9: Winter Officials Mechanics - Listen
Nov. 26: Instant Replay - Listen
Nov. 11: Tourney Selection - Listen
Nov. 4: Receiver Carried Out of End Zone Listen
Oct. 28: Volleyball Back-Row Block Listen
Oct. 21: Soccer Disallowed Goal Listen
Sept 30: Field Goal Falls Short Listen
Sept. 23: Volleyball Obstruction Listen
Sept. 16: Catch or No Catch  Listen
Sept. 9: Intentional Grounding – Listen 
Sept. 2: Pass Interference – Listen 
Aug. 26: Protocols and Mechanics 
 Listen

Forest Park Working to Make Most of Every Second in Drive to Return Downstate

By John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com

March 3, 2026

CRYSTAL FALLS — The Crystal Falls Forest Park boys basketball team appears to be on a mission as it progresses through the postseason.

Upper PeninsulaForest Park is fresh from earning its third-consecutive Division 4 District basketball title with a 73-38 defeat of Norway on Friday in Crystal Falls.

The Trojans (19-4) resume at 5 p.m. (CST) tonight when they face Felch North Dickinson in a Regional Semifinal at Kingsford.

“(North Dickinson has) a real good team,” Forest Park coach Jason Price said. “Nothing’s easy in the tournaments.”

The teams split during the regular season with North Dickinson taking a 57-55 decision at Crystal Falls on Jan. 20 and the Trojans rolling past the Nordics 77-39 on at North Dickinson on Feb. 2.

Junior Vic Guiliani, an all-state selection last winter who missed his junior football season due to a torn meniscus, returned to the Trojans’ basketball lineup shortly after the holidays.

Trojans coach Jason Price talks to his team between the third and fourth quarters against Marquette. “It feels real good to be back,” he said. “It took a lot of work to get back. It took a couple games to get back into the flow.

It also feels good to get three (District titles) in a row. We feel very lucky. Not every team can do that.”

The Trojans opened their postseason journey with an 80-38 triumph at Powers North Central last Wednesday, scoring four players in double digits in each District game.

A year ago, they reached the Division 4 Semifinals at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center, where they fell to eventual champion Wyoming Tri-unity Christian 67-46.

In 2024, Forest Park bowed to St. Ignace 68-51 in a Quarterfinal contest at Gladstone.

This year’s Trojans, with no seniors in the lineup, was led by junior Dax Huuki’s 23 points in Friday’s District Final.

They are wearing T-shirts which have “1920” printed below their team logo.

“That’s on there because that’s the number of seconds there are in a basketball game,” Huuki said. “That’s the type of effort we need all the time.

“This feels good. We worked hard for this all season. Coach told us to settle down and play our game.”

Forest Park turned the ball over just five times in Wednesday’s District opener and committed 10 turnovers in Friday’s championship contest. The Trojans know they’ll need to continue taking care of the ball tonight.

Forest Park's Dax Huuki goes up for two against Marquette's Carter Fierstine at the Vandament Arena. “They have three big guys,” Guiliani said. “They played in the state football finals last fall. They have some real good athletes. We’re playing unselfish basketball. I think we’re the most dangerous when we’re in a fast-paced game and hitting shots. We can also slow it down.”

Norway attempted to slow the pace early in Friday’s contest. The Trojans, however, led 36-20 at halftime and picked it up even more in the second half.

Huuki also has plenty of respect for the Nordics.

“They work as hard in the summer as we do,” he said. “The first game with them was hard. We just tried to learn from that. We have to play the way we know we can. We grew up together and know each other and how we play. Communication is so important.”

Tonight’s winner advances to Thursday’s Regional Final at Negaunee to face the winner of today’s Wakefield-Marenisco/Dollar Bay contest.

“These juniors have played together their whole lives,” Price said. “These are hard-working kids. They put the time in during the offseason. We settled in and played very unselfish again (Friday). We’re defending very well.”

John VrancicJohn Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.

PHOTOS (Top) Crystal Falls Forest Park's Vic Giuliani makes a move to get around Marquette's Halen McCollum and take a shot during a loss to the Sentinels on Feb. 17 at Northern Michigan University. (Middle) Trojans coach Jason Price talks to his team between the third and fourth quarters against Marquette. (Below) Forest Park's Dax Huuki goes up for two against Marquette's Carter Fierstine at the Vandament Arena. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)