The NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Rules Committee at its meeting May 3-5 in Phoenix made two rules recommendations in the men’s game regarding the area secondary defenders can establish position and substitution for a player who is injured and unable to attempt a free throw.

On the men’s rules side, the committee made two significant alterations. After discussing adding a restricted area arc at length, the committee instead decided to define the area under the basket and prohibit a secondary defender from establishing guarding position in that area. In the rules proposal, a secondary defender must establish position outside the area from the front of the rim to the front of the backboard.

“In our surveys and rules forums, the coaches wanted the committee to address the increasing contact that seems to occur under the basket,” said NCAA Secretary-Rules Editor for Men’s Basketball Ed Bilik. “Instead of an experimental rule, this clarifies how officials are to call this play throughout the season.”

The committee also approved a proposal dealing with a free-throw shooter who is injured. In the proposal, if a student-athlete is fouled (without the foul being flagrant or intentional) and unable to attempt the free throws, the opposing coach will choose the player to attempt the free throws from the four remaining players on the court.

“This rule change is intended to eliminate a team that is fouled from gaining an advantage that it does not deserve,” said Dick Hack, chair of the men’s committee and athletics director at New York-Maritime. “We believe this is a solid proposal that will not unduly penalize the team that was fouled.”

All rules changes are subject to approval of the Playing Rules Oversight Panel, which is scheduled to meet via conference call on June 3.

There is also a proposal that allows for the expanded the use of the monitor when available to allow officials to use the technology to review a play and determine if a flagrant foul occurred. This recommendation is for men’s and women’s games.

When a flagrant foul has not occurred, the committee will allow the officiating crew to penalize a student-athlete with an intentional personal or a technical foul for contact.

Both committees also focused on sportsmanship with their points of emphasis, particularly dealing with disrespectful conduct by student-athletes and the respect for the game.

“We are concerned with the growing number of instances in which taunting or confrontation occurs between student-athletes,” said Amy Backus, chair of the women’s committee and senior associate director of athletics at Yale.

The women’s committee also included traveling, and contact on and by the ball handler/dribbler as points of emphasis.

Additionally, they identified contact on a rebound and freedom of movement by all players as focus points.

The men’s committee focused on illegal contact around the basket (charge/block/player control) and excessive swinging of the elbows as points of emphasis. The men also identified as other major concerns three-second violations, administration of a free throw (including distracting the free thrower) and traveling.