New rules abound in ‘09

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Over the years, ACC basketball fans — not to mention the majority of players — have become increasingly frustrated with the practice of defenders camping out underneath the basket and drawing offensive fouls.
In many college basketball circles — at least those outside of Durham, N.C. — this type of play has become loosely known as “The Duke Flop.”
Well, those flops could very well be decreasing this season.
At ACC Media Day on Sunday, John Clougherty, the ACC coordinator of men’s basketball officiating, announced a new rule in which help-defenders will be whistled for fouls if they attempt to take a charge within an 18-24 inch “imaginary” line, extending from the edge of the backboard to the front of the rim.
The only problem with the new rule is that there will be no actual line on the court (like in the NBA) to denote the restricted area. It will be left to the judgment of the officials.
Perhaps, nobody could be affected by the new rule more than Duke.
“It definitely affects us,” agreed Duke guard Jon Scheyer. “I wish there was a line because we almost have to guess, and so do the refs.
“But I understand the rule and think it’s good for the game. I just wish there was a clear outline of where the box is.”
Scheyer laughed when told that some of the other players on hand at Media Day were referring to the new legislation as “The Duke Rule.”
“I don’t care about that,” he said. “That cracks me up, though.”
Virginia freshman Sylven Landesberg, whose game revolves around attacking the basket, believes the rule will help him.
“I’ll be going to the line a lot more,” he said.
More rules
Landesberg, however, was not jumping for joy with some of the other new rules and “points of emphasis” that will go into effect this season.
Landesberg said he “was lost halfway through” a meeting that recently took place at John Paul Jones Arena with a group of officials. “I didn’t know what was going on,” he said. “They said, ‘No more spin moves.’
“I said, ‘Man, they’re just trying to cut everything out.’”
Landesberg said a spin move is now considered a travel unless it is followed by a dribble.
Other new rules are an expanded use of a courtside monitor in order to determine intentional fouls, technical fouls and flagrant fouls, and one that allows a coach to select anyone on his team as a substitute free-throw for an injured player, if a flagrant foul has been committed.
No more tents
Clougherty admitted that the three-second rule has not been administered adequately for some time and that officials will focus on
calling it correctly this season.
“The coaches know we don’t call,” Clougherty said. “The payers know we don’t call it, so they abuse it.”
Clougherty said he looked back at old game tapes and saw players camped out in the paint for eight or nine seconds.
“It was comical,” he said.
Other NCAA points of emphasis
Officials will have a “zero tolerance” policy for unsportsmanlike behavior. One of the main targets will be players on the free-throw line who taunt opposing players as they are shooting. In addition, according to Clougherty, coaches are no longer allowed to scream out plays and instructions while the shooter is on the line.
If there is an infraction, the shooter will receive an additional free throw.
Landesberg, who had a run-in with N.C. State’s Courtney Fells last year in Raleigh, said he would have to watch himself this year.
“I was warned about that a lot of times last year,” Landesberg said. “I was always playing with the shooter.”
The final point of emphasis pertains to “swinging elbows.” If a player with the ball swings his elbows “faster than the normal body movement,” he will be called for a flagrant foul.
Tourney back to Atlanta
The ACC announced that it will be taking its annual tournament back to Atlanta in 2012. However, this time the event will be held at Phillips Arena. It took place at the Georgia Dome last season. “The feedback we were getting was that having a tournament in a traditional-size arena was the best thing for us,” said ACC Commissioner John Swofford.
The tournament is in Greensboro the next two years.