It isn’t a rules year when it comes to college basketball, but there will be things that are going to be enforced differently this coming season.
The biggest change will come in the area of flopping, as college basketball officials want to try to eliminate the practice from occurring according to Greg Burks, Big 12 Coordinator of Officials.
Unlike in the past with warnings, officials will apply a Class B technical foul on instances of flopping in various methods which results in one free throw and then play resumes.
For example, on a head bob where a player tries to exaggerate or sell contact, a shooter falling without contact or kicking his leg out and finally when a defensive player is trying to draw a charge in the post.
The last will be the most difficult to discern, but the referees are being taught that if an offensive player stops on contact and the defensive player falls down it is a flop.
But if the offensive player continues through the contact it will be considered a block/charge decision.
The play isn’t expected to be blown dead until it’s over, but it will result in a free throw and then given back to the team that had possession. If there is no clear possession it will go to the arrow.
“They will let the play get to a stopping point and call the technical,” Burks said.
A player will be permitted three Class B technical before they are ejected from the game.
Another area that will see an adjustment is body contact and bumping cutters or ball handlers. With the way the game is played with so many high ball screens and dribble hand-offs, there has been an effort to stop defenders from bumping and checking.
Along with that, legal screens are another focus and once an offensive player releases the ball he has no rights and must come set or avoid contact entirely.
The final thing that is a focus is keeping coaches in the coaching box during games and that’s a decision that is coming down from the NCAA.
The goal is also to keep assistant coaches seated and those officials that don’t enforce it won’t have the opportunity to work in the NCAA tournament.