Ed Wise knows basketball.

Wise achieved unprecedented success over nearly 20 seasons as a varsity head coach at Pine Grove, Tamaqua, Freedom and Lehighton, leading each school to the district playoffs at least once.In addition to countless team achievements, Wise also produced seven 1,000-point scorers during his time at the four schools.After his lengthy coaching tenure, Wise turned in his clipboard for a whistle, becoming a PIAA basketball official.Having been around basketball for most of his life, the transition was almost seamless."I know the game very well, and I know a lot of the coaches," said Wise, now in his fifth-season as an official. "But there are certainly some nuances of the game that I didn't know as a coach, such as where to go with the ball during dead ball situations."As a coach, I always had my back turned (to the officials) because I was talking to my players, drawing up the next play. But I've had a lot of veteran referees that have helped me to understand certain things I wasn't aware of as a coach."Another major difference for Wise was adjusting to the pace of the game as an official."I just had to slow down," he said. "Before big games, my heart is always racing, just like when I was a coach."But I was just bouncing around too much (on the court) when I started. I learned that you can't anticipate calls, which is something that took time."Moving from the bench to the court has also given Wise a different perspective on the role of an official."As a coach, I didn't always interact with referees in the politest of manners," he said. "But I've changed and mellowed out a lot from when I started coaching, and I've changed since I started officiating."I've always been a people person, and I think it helps me on the court. There are times when I have to explain calls to kids or coaches. I think I have more patience with that aspect of the job having coached for so long."As a coach, Wise admits that some games would stick with him long after the final buzzer. But as an official, the turnaround until the next game is much quicker, leaving little team to dwell on the previous night."I always want to do a good job," Wise said. "But I don't take it home with me as much as I did when I was coaching."I know if I had a good night or a bad night. Not all calls are perfect, but I get the chance to go right back out there and work on it. I don't have three or four days between games to think about it."Wise, who had 39 assignments this year throughout the Mountain Valley Conference, Lehigh Valley Conference and Schuylkill League, has enjoyed his new position, which keeps him around the game he loves."Basketball has been so good to me," he said. "I love being around the game, and that's really what it's all about. I consider myself very lucky to have been involved with the game in so many ways for so long."*******THREE-POINT HONOR ROLL - This past week saw five more TIMES NEWS area athletes named to the "Three-Point Honor Roll," which recognized area players with five or more three-pointers in a single game. On Thursday evening, Panther Valley's Jake Sczcecina buried five treys in a 48-43 win over Pine Grove, while Weatherly's Luke Reiner knocked down five triples in a 62-39 loss to Mahanoy Area. On Friday night, Pleasant Valley's Lance Robinson drained six three-pointers in a 62-54 loss to Pocono Mountain West. Robinson wasn't finished however, as the Bears sharpshooter buried another five treys on Tuesday night in a 56-43 victory over Pocono Mountain East. Robinson joins Lehighton's Jordan Knappenberger as the only TIMES NEWS area players this season to have five or more three-pointers twice in the same week. On the girls side, Northwestern's Sabrina Mertz canned five triples in a 56-46 win over Bangor on Tuesday evening, while Marian's Lindsay Nemeth accounted for five treys in a 74-33 Tuesday night victory over Mahanoy Area.*******A LOW STANDARD - Playing their first game this season without starting point guard Anthony Agosti (who suffered a season-ending leg injury last Monday against Shenandoah Valley), the Marian boys basketball team suffered its worst loss this season with a 68-21 loss to Pius X on Thursday night. The 21 points was the fewst points scored by Marian in the program's storied history. The previous low for points scored in a game was 24, which came against Panther Valley in 1976.*******PLAYOFF BOUND - Two more area basketball teams qualified for the District 11 playoffs this past week, with the Lehighton boys and the Tamaqua boys both punching their tickets. On Friday night, the Indians cliched a District berth with a 77-61 victory over East Stroudsburg South. It marks the second straight year Lehighton has advanced to the District playoffs. On Saturday night, the Tamaqua boys qualified for the District playoffs for the second straight season with a 66-54 victory over Lehighton. It's the first time since the 2001-2002 seasons that the Blue Raiders have made the District Tournament in back-to-back years. Tamaqua and Lehighton bring the total amount of playoff-bound times in the TIMES NEWS coverage area to seven (joining the Northern Lehigh boys, Pleasant Valley girls, Northwestern girls, Palmerton girls and Marian girls).*******ON THE BUBBLE - For two TIMES NEWS area teams, their playoff fates will rest on their ability to win their final League game of the season. The Marian boys currently sport an 8-12 mark, and while they can't post a winning record, they can finish 7-6 in the Schuylkill League with a home victory against Weatherly tonight. A win over the Wreckers puts Marian in the District 11 playoffs for the ninth straight season, while a loss ends the Colts season. Earlier this year, Marian defeated Weatherly 49-32. The Panther Valley boys are currently 10-11 on the season and will need to defeat Tamaqua at home on Friday night to advance to the District 11 playoffs. Panther Valley has defeated Tamaqua in 13 of its past 15 meetings, but the Blue Raiders handed the Panthers a 61-38 setback earlier this season. A Panther Valley win puts the Panthers into the District playoffs, while a loss will end their season.