Technical Ow! Basketball Ref Has Nose Broken By Angry Father

An unhinged youth basketball dad is in legal trouble after he came out of the stands and shoved a ref during a Washington 8th-grade basketball game that had gotten chippy. The 72-year-old ref who was pushed to the ground suffered a broken nose and cheekbone and left Mark McLaughlin, 31, facing an assault charge, the Seattle Times reports.

McLaughlin, who averaged 22.4 ppg at Central Washington University during the 2012-13 season, reportedly had his University of Washington basketball career end after throwing punches with a fellow UW teammate during a 2013 summer pickup game.

As for the December incident with the ref that led to an assault charge, police note that "The defendant is clearly unable to keep his temper under control, even in a room full of children and parents at a school basketball game."

The video evidence is rather clear:

The police, who noted that the ref's nose bled for 1 1/2 hours, say, based on witness statements, that the incident started after McLaughlin's son intentionally fouled an opposing player which resulted in the teams getting chippy.

One thing led to another and McLaughlin's son was knocked down. Witnesses described McLaughlin coming out of the stands and saying, "No one touches my son!"

The ref was knocked down, McLaughlin grabbed his son and took off.

Dad was eventually booked into jail on December 18. He was released after posting a $20,000 bail.

Mark McLaughlin at Central Washington University / via CWU