NBA refs ratify agreement, will return to work

The real referees will work the real games.

The NBA and its referees union agreed on a two-year contract Friday, ending a lockout of more than a month and saving the league from using replacements when the regular season starts.

The officials ratified the deal that was reached earlier this week in a vote Friday night. No details of the vote were provided, nor were terms of the agreement.

"We are pleased to reach this agreement," NBA commissioner David Stern said in a statement. "The negotiations extended further than either side had hoped, but when our regular season tips off on Tuesday we'll have the best referees in the world officiating our games."