RecSports tried the new tactic of running leisure league games without referees this semester. Basketball was the first sport integrated into the new system, and the jury is in: players do not like it.

A variety of guys who participated in the leisure basketball league all said they didn’t like the change.

“When we were up a few points in a game and on a run, the other team would just start calling fouls on us,” said Chris Drapeau, a freshman from Merrillville, Ind.

Like Drapeau, Kyle Aagard, a junior from Wilsonville, Ore., and Marcus Bradshaw, a junior from Nampa, Idaho, felt it generally created more contention in the game, and as a result sportsmanship went out the door in many cases.

Several suggestions have been made on how RecSports could improve the program. Some suggested simply adding referees. This could be a challenge, because referees either have to be paid or volunteer — presenting some obstacles.

Kenny Assmus, a senior from Spokane, Wash., suggested RecSports run the way many church basketball teams do around the country. Each team must provide someone to referee a game right before or after its own game.

Assmus suggested adding a league for players under six feet tall evening out the teams and improve sportsmanship.

Leisure league will be operating without refs for the remainder of the semester.