NATIONAL
FEDERATION BASKETBALL RULES SHALL GOVERN PLAY WITH THE FOLLOWING EXCEPTIONS:
BALL SIZE AND
GOAL HEIGHT
8. 1st and 2nd grade
league will play with a Junior size ball (27.5) and goals will be lowered to
eight feet.
FREE-THROW LINE
9. In the 1st-2nd grade
leagues, free throws will be shot from the bottom of the free-throw circle.
LANE VIOLATIONS
10. For three-seconds-in-the lane violations in
all leagues, the lane will begin at the bottom of the free throw line for that
league.
TIME-OUTS
11. Coaches will be allowed to call for time outs
from the sideline. 30-second time-outs
will not be utilized in LGB games. Each
team will be allowed four (4) 1-minute time-outs during regulation play. One (1) additional time-out is awarded per
team during overtime.
3 POINT SHOT
12.
3-point shots are allowed if the court is marked with a 3-point line.
JEWELRY
13. No jewelry of any kind including pierced
earrings or piercing studs may be worn.
No metal or other hard objects may be worn in the hair.
TIME LIMITS
14. 1st and 2nd grade
league will use a “running clock”. The clock will only stop for: (1)
time-outs, (2) shooting fouls, (3) injuries ,(4) on the whistle the last 2
minutes of the 4th quarter, and (5) at any time the referee sees a
need.
Games will consist of 4 six-minute quarters. There will be at least one-minute allowed
between quarters and overtime periods, and three minutes at half-time. Teams will be given at least five minutes to
warm-up.
14a.
“Mercy Rule” – If a team is up by more than 15 points in the final 2 minutes of
the game, the clock will stay a running clock.
OVERTIME
15. If a game is tied at the end of
regulation play, an overtime period(s) of two-minutes will be played and the
clock will stop on the whistle. If the
score is still tied at the end of the first overtime period, the first team to
score in the second, or any subsequent, overtime period will be the winner
(sudden death). One (1) additional time-out is awarded per team per overtime
period. Timeouts, if not used, will
carry over from one period to the next.
NUMBER OF COACHES
16. No more than three coaches are allowed on a
team's bench during a game. All coaches
and assistant coaches must be approved by the board. Please
maintain only one coach standing at a time.
NUMBER
OF PLAYERS ON A TEAM
1.
In the 1st and 2nd grade league, a team will
consist of no less than 7 players nor more than 9. The board may grant exceptions to this rule
as it deems appropriate.
REQUIRED
PLAYING TIME
2.
All 1st and 2nd grade players are required to play two complete
quarters from start to finish (2 quarter rule).
THERE WILL BE NO FREE
SUBSTITUTIONS IN THE FIRST HALF EXCEPT WHEN AN INJURY HAS OCCURRED AND THE
PLAYER CAN NO LONGER CONTINUE TO PLAY.
All players are required to sit out one complete quarter from
start to finish (1 quarter sit out rule).
No player may play in more than three quarters (3 quarter rule). Refusal
by either coach to abide by these rules is subject to protest, which could
result in a forfeiture. There are four
exceptions to these rules:
2a.
An injury prevents a player from finishing a quarter. In this situation, the injured player is
considered to have played the complete quarter for the purposes of the “2
quarter rule”. The player substituted
for the injured player must still comply with the “2 quarter rule”, “3 quarter
rule” and “1 quarter sit out rule”.
Because of the restrictive requirements of the playing time rules, an
injured player may continue in the game even though her coach has been called
onto the floor to attend the injured player.
Also, the injured player’s coach may choose to complete the quarter with
only 4 players on the floor.
2b. Fewer than seven players are present at the
start of a game. In this situation, the
"1 quarter sit out rule" and the "3 quarter rule" are
waived for only the shorthanded teams. Late arrivals do not reinstate the
"1 quarter sit out rule" or the "3 quarter rule", unless that player arrives during the first
quarter. The 2 quarter rule is still
in effect.
2c. Only 4 eligible players remain as a result of
fouls or injury. When a team has only
four eligible players, a player who has already played in 3 quarters may
re-enter the game. In this situation,
the "3 quarter rule" and the "1 quarter sit out rule" are
waived for the now shorthanded team.
2d. The "3 quarter rule" does not apply
to overtime periods.
2e. The commissioner(s)
of the league will monitor playing time through the scorebook to ensure total
amount of quarters played for player is reasonably close. This is to ensure no single player is
receving the vast majority of the extra quarters played under the 3 quarter
rule. This method has worked well in
lieu of the draw (see section 4) the last few years. Beginning in 2018, coaches will receive a quarter count for
their team weekly to assist with making playing time reasonably close.
3. At the start of a
game, should a team have 4 players, the game will start with 4 vs 4.
Should a fifth player arrive
before the first quarter, 5 vs 5 basketball will commence at the start of the
2nd quarter. Should a fifth player arrive after that point, the game will
continue in it's entirety, 4 vs 4.
THE
"DRAW"
4.
The “Draw” is a mainstay of LGB competition to assist in levelling the
competitive playing field. However, through the late 2015 season, all of 2016,
and all of 2017, the Draw has fell into disuse in the 1st/2nd
grade division. Should a situation arise
where the Draw needs to be reinstated, the commissioners of the league, in
consolutation with the board, will distribute the information necessary for
this rule to the coaches and other stake holders. This can happen at any time with LGB Board
Approval.
LATE
ARRIVALS - NO SHOWS
5.
In the 1st and 2nd grade leagues, each player is required to play 2
complete quarters from start to finish - "2 quarter rule". ANY
PLAYER ARRIVING AFTER THE START OF THE GAME BUT BEFORE THE BEGINNING OF THE THIRD
QUARTER WILL BE ALLOWED TO ENTER THE GAME IF THE COACH CAN COMPLY WITH THE "2
quarter rule". LATE ARRIVALS WILL
BE DEEMED TO HAVE "SAT OUT" THE FIRST QUARTER FOR PURPOSES OF THE
"1 quarter sit out rule". ANY
PLAYER ARRIVING AFTER THE START OF THE THIRD QUARTER WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO
ENTER THE GAME. There is no penalty
for adding a late arriving player to the scorebook. No shows will be recorded in the scorebook as
appropriate.
DEFENSE
6. No full court press will be allowed in
the 1st and 2nd grade league. For the first two violations of this rule, the
offensive team will be allowed a 5-foot unhindered throw-in at the mid-court
sideline. On the third and all
subsequent violations a technical foul will be assessed against the pressing
team.
7. A “double
team free zone” will be implemented.
This will include all areas outside the current offensive 3 point line. As the name suggests, double teaming will not
be permitted in this zone. The
consideration for Double Teaming will be at the officials discretion, however,
it will be implied that a play on the ball handler must be made by a second
defensive player, as opposed to just standing close (i.e. another defensive
player guarding an offensive player without the ball who happens to be very
close to the ball handler). Exceptions
and details outlined below.
***NOTE: RULE 7 AND SUBRULES ARE PROVISIONAL FOR THE 2018 SEASON. The
commissioner and officials, in consultation with the coaches, will review this
rule at seasons end. If an immediate need arises, it can be changed mid-season
with board approval***
7a. The zone only becomes valid once ALL
OFFENSIVE players have crossed half court.
Therefore, it will not be enforced on transitional plays. Doing so would interfere in the teaching of
the girls to “stop the basketball” in transitional defense. If the progress of the offensive player is
stopped in the zone, double teaming must cease once all offensive players come
across half court, with a verbal warning from the official before penalties are
assessed.
7b. The zone becomes invalid in a loose ball
situation. It will once again become
valid if the offensive team regains
possession of the ball, with a verbal warning from the official before
penalties are assessed.
7c. Once the three point line is crossed, the
zone becomes invalid for the rest of the possession.
7d. Violations: For the first two violations of
this rule, the offensive team will be allowed a 5-foot unhindered throw-in at
the mid-court sideline. On the third and
all subsequent violations a technical foul will be assessed against the
pressing team.
UNIFORMS
17.
After completion of league practice games, no player will be allowed to
play in a game unless she is in full LGB-issued uniform (numbers 0 through 9 or
any other number approved by the LGB uniform committee chairman or LGB board
may be used). Permenant exceptions must
be granted by the uniform committee chairman.
A temporary exception may be granted by the league commissioner. Refer to the National Federation rules for
the wearing of compression, sanitary or bike shorts.
Changes
1/26/2017 – Removed Draw, Added provision to start games at 4x4, adjust
required playing time rule, Removed no double team beyond 3-pt line, Added
section on playing Half Court Defense, added mention of one standing coach
11/19/17 – Made nearly all changes from 1/26/17 permenant, except defensive
play rules, which require further modification as noted. “The Draw” still receives a section to allow
flexibility of re-adding it should it become necessary. Removed previous defense rules in favor of a
new method. Added one minute to the
quarters. Also inserted a small Mercy
Rule. Fixed grammar and spelling
mistakes.