Referees Who Ejected Bibby Are Suspended

The officiating crew that wrongly ejected Coach Henry Bibby during the USC-Arizona State game last week was suspended Monday by Pac-10 Commissioner Tom Hansen.

Lead referee Richie Ballesteros was suspended for two games, while fellow officials Jim Giron and Don McAllister were suspended one game each.

Bibby was ejected in the second half when Giron slapped a technical foul on assistant coach Dave Miller. Bibby had been given a technical by Ballesteros in the first half.

If a head coach receives two technicals, or the team bench receives three, the coach is ejected. But since that didn’t happen, Bibby--who was allowed to return to the game nearly five minutes later--should not have been told to leave.

“The officials improperly ejected a head coach from an important conference game because they misinterpreted the rules governing application of technical fouls,” Hansen said in a statement. “While the crew chief has ultimate responsibility, each member of the crew is charged with knowledge of the rules and applying them correctly.

“In this [case], the crew failed to communicate fully about what had been called and how the rules should be applied. They are all accountable for the error.”

Hansen said Ballesteros was suspended from the UCLA-Oregon game on Thursday and the USC-Washington State game March 10. Giron was suspended from the Oregon-Oregon State game March 10, and McAllister was suspended from Wednesday’s Arizona-Arizona State game.