The basketball Hawks say a host of new rules won’t affect the way they play, and Big Ten coaches agree.
By Ian Murphy
Take away five seconds from a day, and nothing much would change.
Take away five seconds from the shot clock in basketball, and you’ll start to hear more discussion.
The NCAA basketball rules committee did just that, reducing the shot clock from 35 seconds to 30 seconds in an effort to speed up the game and encourage scoring.
But the Hawkeyes and head coach Fran McCaffery said the change won’t have much effect on their offense.
“In terms of playing fast and shooting it early to the clock, we’re trying to do that anyway,” McCaffrey said. “Typically, if we don’t, it’s because somebody is trying to stop us from doing that.”
Nationwide, teams scored just 67.6 points per game last season, according to the NCAA website. Iowa averaged just above that mark, scoring 69.8 points per game.
This marks the first time the shot clock has been reduced since the 1993-1994 season, when it shrank from 45 seconds to 35.
The shot clock dominated conversation during the Oct. 15 Big Ten basketball media day in Rosemont, Illinois. Most coaches agreed that the shot clock would not change much, except for moving the ball faster.
“You know, it’s still going to be you’ve got to put the ball in the basket, and you’ve got to try to stop the other guys from putting the ball in the basket, whether it’s a 5-second shot clock or 30,” Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said.
Ryan noted the Badgers have also installed their press and press break earlier to counter the quicker clock but said, in his 39 years in the University of Wisconsin system, he’s coached with a number of rule changes.
Other coaches said they would go further with the rule changes, which include a new restricted arc as well as different rules for guarding on the perimeter.
“I like the 30-second. We played over in Europe this summer; we played with a 24-second,” Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said. “If it were up to me, if I was the czar for the day, I’d try to get every rule like the NBA, personally.”
The NBA uses a 24-second shot clock and a deeper 3-point line.
Other changes to the NCAA rule book include one fewer time-out carrying over from the first half and removing a coach’s ability to call a time-out when a ball is live.
All these are designed to improve the pace of play, something the Hawkeyes have said they emphasize anyway.
McCaffery said the Hawkeyes are working on both 3-point shooting and running the ball.
But senior Anthony Clemmons said the coaches have emphasized pushing the ball the most, with the 30-second shot clock in mind.
“[McCaffery] always emphasizes pushing the ball; that’s what he wants,” Clemmons said. “With a 30-second shot clock you pretty much have to do that now.
“It’s going to be key to how we play and … how good our offense is going to be when we push the ball.”
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