USA TODAY US Edition

Making the correct call

Married refs find time at home, on road during season

- USA TODAY Jeff Zillgitt

TAMPA – Newlyweds Lauren Holtkamp and Jonathan Sterling wanted to do what many couples do on their day off.

Run errands, take their dog to the park, watch episodes of House Hunters on HGTV and Black Mirror on Netflix.

But Holtkamp and Sterling are not like any other couple. They are NBA referees, and on this late January day, it’s a rare instance when they are at home together. Mostly, they are crisscross­ing the country away from each other days at a time during the season. This was the first time they had seen each other in three weeks.

“We’ve learned it’s quality over quantity, and we manage expectatio­ns around quality over quantity in-season,” Holtkamp, 37, told USA TODAY. “Quality is getting to have a night home together and just spending time with each other doing basic, day-to-day things.”

“Running errands is quality time,” said Sterling, 35.

The season is one extended long-dis- tance relationsh­ip, made manageable by finding days when they’re both at home, using FaceTime, meeting in other cities when their schedules allow it, sending text messages and leaving diary-like notes to each other in a shared email account.

“Part of the magic of making things work is being able to keep life going when you’re on the road and away from home,” Holtkamp said.

Said Sterling: “Each year since the year we met is a learning process —

USA TODAY spotlights one rookie each week as part of our weekly Rookie Power Rankings.

Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon might have inadverten­tly aided Donovan Mitchell’s rise to stardom.

When Gordon pulled out of Saturday’s All-Star dunk contest because of a hip injury, it created a spot for Mitchell, who has quickly shown himself as one of the most acrobatic and electric dunkers in the league.

Alley-oops, surging fast breaks, tipdunks, it doesn’t matter. Mitchell throws them all down. He’ll compete Saturday night in the dunk contest against Indiana’s Victor Oladipo, Dallas rookie Dennis Smith Jr. and new Cleveland Cavalier Larry Nance Jr.

The Jazz rookie was initially slated to participat­e in Saturday night’s skills competitio­n before he got the call and pulled out of the multi-skill challenge. Mitchell will still compete for the U.S. team in the Rising Stars challenge on Friday night.

“I’ve been Googling or YouTubing the old dunk contests to figure out dunks that kind of got overlooked that are still pretty tough and guys are a little bit taller than me have done, so if I do it, it might look a little bit better,” he told reporters.

Veterans are catching on and want no part of Mitchell’s aerial display.

On Friday night vs. Charlotte, which turned into Utah’s eighth consecutiv­e win, Mitchell trailed on a fast break, charged down the lane and chucked the ball through the hoop as Nicolas Batum sidesteppe­d the incoming train.

On Monday night, he rallied the Jazz past San Antonio for their NBA-best 10th consecutiv­e win, scoring 25, including eight of Utah’s final nine points.

Not only is Mitchell thriving, but during their streak the Jazz also have beaten six playoff teams and the top two teams in each conference, Toronto and Golden State.

Hovering around .500, they’ve slowly given themselves a chance at the playoffs while reinforcin­g Mitchell’s Rookie of the Year candidacy. NBA All-Stars are taking notice.

USA TODAY’s Sam Amick, Jeff Zillgitt, Michael Singer and AJ Neuharth-Keusch vote in our weekly rookie rankings. Stats through Monday’s games.

1. Ben Simmons, Philadelph­ia 76ers:

16.4 ppg, 7.3 apg, 7.7 rpg

Simmons just keep plugging away. With him on the court, the 76ers have an offensive rating of 106.2 points per 100 possession­s, while with him off they’re at 103.2. Defensivel­y, with him on, they allow 101.7 points per 100 possession­s, and with him off they’re at 105.6.

2. Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz:

19.5 ppg, 3.4 apg, 3.5 rpg

Mitchell scored 40 on 14-for-19 shooting from the field in a recent win over Phoenix. It’s the second time this season he’s scored at least 40. The only other active players to reach that mark as rookies are LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Eric Gordon and Carmelo Anthony.

3. Lauri Markkanen, Chicago Bulls:

15.3 ppg, 1.3 apg, 7.7 rpg Markkanen is tied with Devin Booker and C.J. Miles for 28th in the NBA with 112 three-pointers made this season. He, along with Simmons, Tatum and Mitchell, will take part in the Rising Stars challenge on Friday night of All-Star Weekend.

4. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics:

13.6 ppg, 1.4 apg, 5.1 rpg

Since dislocatin­g the pinkie on his shooting hand on Dec. 20, Tatum hasn’t shot better than 34% from the threepoint line in either January or February after leading the league in three-point percentage throughout much of the first half of the season.

5. De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings:

11.3 ppg, 4.3 apg, 2.6 rpg

It’s officially the Fox show in Sacramento after the Kings traded veteran George Hill during last week’s trade deadline. Fox said recently that Kings coach Dave Joerger has entrusted him with more of the play calling and oftentimes won’t dictate a play, content to let the rookie play through. Fox has averaged over 14 points in January and February since moving into a more prominent role.

 ??  ?? Married couple Lauren Holtkamp and Jonathan Sterling balance life and work on the road. JONATHAN DYER/USA TODAY SPORTS
Married couple Lauren Holtkamp and Jonathan Sterling balance life and work on the road. JONATHAN DYER/USA TODAY SPORTS

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