A point of emphasis for officiating crews is to maintain the same pace throughout the game. Ideally, you want to get the ball back between the hashes, get it spotted, and blow the "ready" in consistent manner which does not disrupt the flow of the game. You want to be quick so as to not waste time or slow down the game, but hurring too much means that you aren't watching the players and doing your proper "dead ball officiating."
The officials were correct to start the clock with a fresh play clock after the false start, but in a situation where the referee feels that the tactic is being used intentionally to run down the clock, he can stop it.
The problem, as you guys nailed it, is that is comes down to the discretion of the official. Best advice is to communicate what you feel is happening to your wing official as calmly as possible.
