Referee Program Overview

NoVa Youth Hoops partners with the Potomac Valley Officials Association (PVOA) to provide qualified basketball officials for our House League and High School House programs. Referees work as independent contractors through PVOA, which manages the recruitment, training, development, and assignment of officials for games in the local South Loudoun area.

PVOA recruits referees annually and provides orientation, on-court training, and opportunities for new officials to gain experience through preseason scrimmages. PVOA also provides mentoring and development opportunities to help officials improve their skills and progress to higher-level games.

Youth Referee Program

NoVa Youth Hoops supports PVOA's youth referee development program for students in grades 9–12 who are interested in learning to officiate basketball.

New youth officials have the opportunity to gain practical experience officiating games in our younger age divisions, including our Rookie Development and elementary programs. Experienced officials and mentors provide guidance and feedback to help youth referees develop their knowledge of the rules, positioning, mechanics, communication, and game management.

As youth officials gain experience and demonstrate proficiency, PVOA may assign them to officiate progressively higher-level games.

Parents, We Need You Too!

NoVa Youth Hoops and PVOA are always looking for new and experienced adult officials to help officiate our games.

PVOA provides training and development opportunities for individuals who are new to officiating, as well as mentoring opportunities for experienced officials who want to continue developing their skills.

If you have an interest in basketball and would like to become an official, we encourage you to consider joining the PVOA officiating program.

Referee Requirements

Referees are responsible for purchasing their own officiating uniform and equipment. Standard equipment includes:

• Striped referee shirt
• Solid black pants
• Black athletic shoes
• Whistle (a Fox 40 whistle is recommended)

A uniform vendor may be available at on-court training sessions, or uniforms can be purchased online or at a local sporting goods store.

New officials are encouraged to attend the orientation session before purchasing a uniform to ensure they have the appropriate equipment.

Schedule

Orientation and Registration

Orientation and registration are typically scheduled for late October or early November. Referees are required to attend one of the scheduled orientation sessions.

On-Court Training

On-court training is typically scheduled for the third weekend in November. Returning referees are asked to attend one of the training sessions, while new referees are encouraged to attend both sessions.

Scrimmages

Scrimmage weekend is typically held the first weekend following Thanksgiving, generally the first weekend in December.

New referees are required to participate in one of the elementary scrimmage sessions to gain valuable on-court experience. Returning referees are encouraged to participate as a preseason refresher and to help mentor new officials.

Scrimmage assignments and sign-ups will be provided during the training sessions.

Games

Regular-season games typically run from mid-December through late February and are generally played on Saturdays and Sundays.

A select group of officials may be invited by PVOA to officiate playoff games through early March. Referees are typically assigned approximately 1–3 games per weekend, depending on availability, experience, and scheduling needs.