Shorter shot clock

[jv001]

I've said this before: I think the physicality of the game today has more to do with slowing it down than a shot clock could speed it up.

Even with the (somewhat haphazardly) more tightly called games this year, there was still a lot of pushing and grabbing, illegal screens, etc.

Bring back flowy basketball!

-jk

College basketball is not as "good on the eyes" as it used to be and I agree it has to do with the physicality of the game. But as long as palming/carrying the ball is allowed, defenses will be at a great disadvantage. The game will be rough and physical with players getting in foul trouble trying to stop dribble penetration. Let's adopt jk's "Bring back flowy basketball"! GoDuke!

[Bob Green]

I'm in the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" camp so I voted to keep the 35 second shot clock. I actually believe teams should have to be able to play good defense so I am not in favor of shortening possessions to 30 or 24 seconds. I see no issue with college basketball having slightly different rules than the NBA and International competition.

[bluenorth]

I think that you'd find that a 24 second shot clock allows plenty of time for a team to initiate and run an offense. Once you're used to it it's no problem to swing the ball completely at least twice, and sometimes more. One factor is that in FIBA it's an eight second count to get over center court, so the offensive team is already moving a little quicker. It definitely cuts down on having a point guard surveying the defence for 10 seconds and then maybe making a pass to a wing before getting it back and relaxing again. Another thing to consider is that it's much easier for the defence to play hard for 24 seconds than it is for 35. For those of us who like to see good aggressive defence that can be a bonus.

[JNort]

I'm in the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" camp so I voted to keep the 35 second shot clock. I actually believe teams should have to be able to play good defense so I am not in favor of shortening possessions to 30 or 24 seconds. I see no issue with college basketball having slightly different rules than the NBA and International competition.

Depends on what you call broke. I'd say the check engine light is on though

[rasputin]

Depends on what you call broke. I'd say the check engine light is on though

So, just do what Homer did: put a piece of masking tape over the check engine light. "Problem solved!"

[gus]

Sort of yes, sort of no. There's now a defensive 3 in the key call that (like illegal defense) results in a technical foul - essentially, a defender playing off the ball can't be in the key unless his man is within arm's length.

That hardly makes a zone defense impossible. It just prevents a big man from camping out under the basket alone.

[-jk]

That hardly makes a zone defense impossible. It just prevents a big man from camping out under the basket alone.

Define "zone defense"...

-jk

[hurleyfor3]

Geez, car analogies? My car died last week going down I-70. As in two cylinders blew. Had to coast into Golden and get it towed back. Signed the title away yesterday. The automotive equivalent of losing to Mercer.

Anyway, I don't consider those "problems". The basketball things, I mean. I like variety in college basketball and don't mind the occasional 47-45 game, prior wisecracks about the old Big East notwithstanding. I don't want to know how the 2010 championship game would have gone with an extra three or four possessions for both teams.

I'm in favor of some rule harmonization. Some. Nba 3-pointers are HARD; keep the college line where it is. Use the international rules on timeouts and talking to the refs at all levels (coach talks to a floor ref, it's a T). Go to two 20-minute halves at all levels and nba rules on technicals; the college rules on T's remind me of the Internal Revenue Code (hey, it's April 15).

[superdave]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...hibition-games

[BigWayne]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...hibition-games

Doing this in exhibition games against the usual decidedly weaker opponents is like drinking Coors Light in order to get a feel of what a shot of whiskey will do to you.

[COYS]

Doing this in exhibition games against the usual decidedly weaker opponents is like drinking Coors Light in order to get a feel of what a shot of whiskey will do to you.

Let's just hope the Coors next year has nothing in common with the Coors Light we drank when Vermont came to Cameron last year.

[Edouble]

I voted for 40.

For those that speak of expanding the fan base, the more you make college hoops like the NBA, the less able to compete with the NBA college hoops will be.

If you make college the mirror image of the pros, but with lesser talent, there is no reason to watch college ball for the average fan!

I love the chess match of an NCAA Tournament matchup between say, UCLA, who wants to run, and BYU, who wants to grind it out. The NBA is about the star players: LeBron, KD, Harden, CP3... College is about teams, and so many teams' identities are forged within that shot clock. If you eliminate the ability for the little guys , the blue collar guys, and the "smart" guys to grind it out, then the potential for upsets takes quite a hit.

How far do you want to go to make it the most "exciting product" that you can create? Why not just play 5 on 4, with two teams on each half court (like my grandmother used to play in the 1930s)? That would really up the scoring.

[BigWayne]

Let's just hope the Coors next year has nothing in common with the Coors Light we drank when Vermont came to Cameron last year.

Vermont was a D1 game. Exhibition games are usually against D2 teams or non-NCAA teams. Credit to Coach K that he goes for one of the best D2 teams, but it's still a D2 team.

[COYS]

Vermont was a D1 game. Exhibition games are usually against D2 teams or non-NCAA teams. Credit to Coach K that he goes for one of the best D2 teams, but it's still a D2 team.

Ah yes, you make a good point. My bad. I had a brain fart reading the article.

[Henderson]

Bubba Cunningham was voting to change the shot clock to 24" so it would improve the sight lines for some of the end zone spectators. Then someone explained the difference between 24 inches and 24 seconds. Bubba grabbed another breakfast roll and pinched his brow a bit. He's good with the outcome in the end after his staff explained it.

[BlueDster]

I am a fan of moving to the 30 second shot clock. The problem I have with the 35 second shot clock is not the original possession in which the team must bring the ball full court, but when there is a foul or offensive rebound and the clock is reset to 35. There's nothing worse than watching a team dribble around the perimeter until there is 8 seconds left on the clock, drawing a touch foul, then inbounding the ball and dribbling around again for a full 35 second shot clock. In my opinion, the first 10 seconds of the shot clock should be gone once they have elapsed: that is, the clock should reset to a maximum of 25 seconds (unless more time than that was on the clock when the foul or rebound happened). This would speed up the game without actually taking away from the time the team has to run their offense, as 6-8 seconds are taken bringing the ball up in a new possession anyway.

[Kedsy]

In my opinion, the first 10 seconds of the shot clock should be gone once they have elapsed: that is, the clock should reset to a maximum of 25 seconds (unless more time than that was on the clock when the foul or rebound happened).

This is a reasonable idea, and the NCAA rules committee is reportedly considering it (look in the section entitled "experimental rules").

[Olympic Fan]

Whatever your opinion of the shot clock and what time it should be, I would think we can all agree that the "experiment" is a ridiculous waste of time.

At most, we're talking about a two games against greatly inferior teams -- and in a setting where nobody is going to hold the ball, since both coaches want to use the exhibitions to look at their players. For more than half of the NCAA, it's just one exhibition -- they play controlled closed scrimmages against other D1 schools in place of those other.