NCAA Rules Shifts in Women's Basketball Changing Halves to Quarters

By Mike Siroky

For those of us who have written abut women’s college basketball for decades, we long ago learned to segment the games.

You look for the runs in any game, the moments when control of game was taken, even if it was not until the closing minute.

Long before host schools did a good job with play-by-play sheets, you kept your own.

You learned to look at the clock for the time of your notation. Like early attendance or assists sheets, your own notes did not match the official school ones.

But your name was on the story and you went with your own notes.

Having covered high school, you were also use to quarters instead of full-run halves.

The women’s game under the NCAA have slowly become more standard to the men’s game and international rules.

Next up is a change from flowing halves to four 10-minute quarters.

As a writer, I have often thought in time references to quarters and sometimes in early drafts have actually written it that way.

The NCAA Women’s Basketball Rules Committee recommended the proposal following its meeting May this week in Indianapolis.

All rules proposals must be approved by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel, which is scheduled to discuss the recommended women’s basketball rules changes via conference call June 8.

Before the vote, committee members thoroughly debated the concept of moving the game away from the 20-minute halves format that women’s basketball has always used in NCAA competition.

They also consulted coaches and got an endorsement from the Women’s National Basketball Coaches Association. The WNBA has played quarters since its inception in 1997.

There are more recommendations:

Post defense

The committee recommended defenders be allowed to place a forearm or an open hand with a bend in the elbow on an offensive post player with the ball whose back is to the basket.

Free Throws

Teams would reach the bonus to shoot two free throws on the fifth team foul in each quarter.

In the current format, teams reach a one-and-one bonus on the seventh team foul of each half and reach the double bonus (two shots) on the 10th team foul.

In the proposed four-quarter format, team fouls would be reset to zero at the start of each quarter. However, if a team reaches the bonus in the fourth quarter, that team would remain in the bonus in any additional overtime periods.

In the proposed format, teams would have four timeouts (three 30-second timeouts and one 60-second timeout).

A team may use the 60-second timeout at the discretion of the coach during the first or second half of the game.

Teams would be allowed to carry over only two of those timeouts into the second half.

Each team would be awarded one 30-second timeout in each overtime period, plus any unused timeouts remaining from the second half.

Under the current format, teams have five timeouts (four 30-second stoppages and one 60-second stoppage) with only four of those carrying over to the second half.

In non-televised games, teams would have five timeouts (three 30s and two 60s). Four of the timeouts would carry over to the second half.

Advancing the ball

The committee also recommends teams be allowed to advance the ball to the front court following a timeout called after made baskets in the last 59.9 seconds of the fourth quarter and any overtime periods.

Teams also would be allowed to advance the ball to the front court after securing the ball from a rebound or a change of possession and calling a timeout before any advancement of the ball (dribble or pass).

In these scenarios, the ball would be inbounded at the 28-foot mark on the side of the court where the scorer’s table is located.

Because teams would no longer be required to go the length of the court, committee members feel this change would add more excitement to offensive possessions at the end of games.

Halfcourt

For the past two seasons, NCAA women’s basketball has used the 10-second backcourt rule.

Before that, you could dribble time away in the backcourt.

For the upcoming season, the committee is proposing a team not receive a new 10-second backcourt count when a throw-in results from the following:

· The ball is deflected out of bounds by the defense.
· There is a held ball and the possession arrow favors the offensive team.
· A technical foul is called on the offensive team while the ball is in its backcourt.

The Bands Play On

In an effort to improve the overall fan experience, the committee recommended bands or amplified music may be played during any dead-ball situation. Current rules allow music to be played only during timeouts and intermission.


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