In recent weeks, though, it seems he hasn't. Meanwhile, Tom Rucker, Mike Sanzere and Tom Clark whistled Ohio State for 31 fouls, a season high, against Iowa. O'Brien blamed the foul-fest on the emphasis on eliminating rough play instituted by the NCAA before the season. He has expressed frustration throughout the season that it is inconsistently applied, not only from game to game but during games. Even members of the same crew might not call a game uniformly.
Different officials interpret the new guidelines differently.
Some whistle seemingly every bump, possibly to impress their supervisors, whose evaluations help determine who works the NCAA Tournament and how far into it they work. O'Brien said he felt it was no coincidence that Iowa scored 53 points in the second half while Johnson was out of the lineup for 12 minutes after picking up his third and fourth fouls. Ohio State led by 12 points when he exited and was outscored by a point the rest of the half. It's no secret we get in trouble when he's not in the game,'' Brian Brown said. In the last six games, Johnson was in foul trouble in five, the only exception being the victory over Illinois.