Well, the NCAA is making things a bit more interesting for the basketball season ahead. Last week the NCAA drew up 3 new rule changes for the upcoming season. I know Meatloaf says “two out of three ain’t bad”, but I think he if was talking about rule changes, he might require more perfection. The first of the rule changes is now Referees are able to use instant replay to determine flagrant fouls and ejections. I like this rule so we will file that one under “good”. The second of the three new rules is if the free throw shooter is injured and unable to shoot, the coach must choose a player to shoot from the four remaining on the floor. Think back to the tourney last year. Mizzou subbed in for an “injured” free throw shooter who subsequently came right back into the game a second later, unaffected by his “injury”. No more of that = great rule numero dos (number 2 for our non Spanish speaking readers). Moving on, this is where the rule change gets a little sketchy. The third rule states that “Secondary defenders must establish position outside the area between the backboard and the front of the rim to draw a charge call.” So now the Refs not only have to determine between a block and a charge, they also have to determine if the player was inside or outside of a no charge zone. Sounds good right? Let throw something else in there…the Refs won’t have the luxury of a painted arc to represent the no charge zone like the NBA officials do. Therefore the Referee has to determine if the defender was inside or outside the area between the backboard and the front of the rim before deciding whether or not the offensive player had control of the ball, the defenders feet were set, the offensive player initiated contact, etc. all while the game is going at the speed of light. The reason there will be no arcs painted on the floors is because the NCAA says “it would take about 4 years for approval through all the proper channels” and they wanted something to add that would be “beneficial right away.” How in the F is this going to be beneficial? This is going to create so many more arguments and controversy. With no arc on the floor, you pretty much cannot be proven wrong without a replay from above. So, in closing, there are only 2 things I have to say: 1.) The NCAA is lazy. Get it through the channels and get it painted on the floor. 2.) Refs…FYL.
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