Phantom And-1 is as Augusta as the Baked Carota

What is the phantom and-1? The phantom and-1 is as rare as a triple rainbow. It walks the line of poor sportsmanship and clever gamesmanship. The phantom and-1 could cost your team if not successful. It takes precise awareness and maybe a few asshat referees to accomplish. It is the kind of tomfoolery in sports that may cause a fight between adults but may also swing momentum and completely flatten the opponent. I first became aware of the phantom and-1 as a high school junior. The Augusta Panthers boys varsity team had just come off a dreadful 1998-99 season. But there had been improvement and we were really looking forward to a much better season in 1999-2000. The Panthers had a very solid Bellevue team coming to town. We knew it would be a battle. Derrick Bach was our featured offensive player. Late in the third, Bach cruised through the lane but was met at the basket by a Bellevue defender. By today’s NBA rules, the foul could’ve possibly been called a flagrant. Derrick threw the ball high into the air while being knocked to the floor. The official had made the call of a personal foul well before the ball had begun its descent toward the basket. This was noticed by Coach Robin Kelsch. As the official made his way to the scorer’s table, Coach Kelsch was screaming for an and-1, claiming the ball had gone through the basket, it had not.  Of course, in true Augusta fashion, the entire bench and spectators started doing the same. A confused, befuddled look came upon the face of the official, the kind of look you get when you are driving to Mt. Olivet and your buddy turns to you asks if you saw that horse with a massive erection. The referee who had made the call motioned then for the other two officials to come together. The Bellevue coach had no clue what was happening at this time but whoa, was that about to change. After a short discussion, the official walked back over to the scorer’s table. For the life of me, I cannot believe that statistician Brian Flaugher’s shit-eating grin didn’t tip off the bluff. The official made the call, counting the basket. One on side there was semi-quiet laughter. But on the other, the Bellevue coach had lost his shit, had gone bananas, had gone bonkers, went ape-shit crazy. The phantom and-1 was invented that evening. For me, it was as groundbreaking as the alley-oop, the euro-step and the Shammgod. The phantom and-1 was attempted several times after that by Coach Kelsch. There were a few successful attempts but many officials have laughed it off as well and some opposing coaches have had WTF moments. The phantom and-1 deserves a plaque in the Panthers Den. It is a rare skill to be able to achieve and becomes a fun story to tell.