Hey Partner,
We are now in the second half of league play, and games are getting pretty intense. Players, coaches, and fans (including the ones in black and white stripes!) are all looking forward to the playoffs. It’s imperative that we give our best effort on the court every night in every game. Part of doing that includes talking with other officials about the situations they experience and sharing our own. Always remember to use the NFHS rulebook to substantiate your rulings, and learn from your mistakes.
This week, we hear from three officials who shared their experiences with our NCOA leadership team.
Official #1 said, "I have a question about fouls while there's a loose ball in the bonus. Suppose we have A1 miss a shot. During the rebound A2 pushes B1. If that was the fifth foul in the quarter would we shoot free throws. I had a referee say we don't. But looking at the rule this seems like a personal foul as a ball in flight is not in team control."
Official #1 for the win! Yup we don't shoot free throws if the foul occurs by the offensive team during team control. You can imagine a player control foul or an illegal screen by the offensive team as two instances where in the bonus we don't shoot free throws. This Rule is found in Rule 10 Section 7 Article 12 Rule 10 Penalties Summary" 1. No free throws: a. For each common foul before the bonus rule is in effect. b. For a player-control or team-control foul."
However, once a try has ended no team-control is established and we shoot free throws for the fifth team foul in a quarter and all subsequent fouls that quarter. Rule 4-8 Section 8 Bonus Free Throws says, "Art. 1...The bonus is the two free throws awarded for a common foul (except a player-control or team-control foul)..."
Official # 2 asks, "At my game last week there was an announcer during the game. The visiting team complained about it but I didn't know what to tell them."
It's pretty simple, Rule 1 Section 18 makes this crystal clear, "The playing of music/sound effects shall only be permitted during pregame, time-outs, intermission and post-game. The use of artificial noisemakers shall be prohibited. The announcer shall be prohibited from making announcements during the game, such as 'two minutes to go."
Official # 3 wanted to know, "Who is responsible for getting blood off the court and who checks if there is no blood on the court?"
Prior to the game we should inspect the court as stated in Rule 2-4-1, " The referee shall: Art. 1 ... inspect and approve all equipment, including court,..."
In Rule 2 Article 3 gives us a clue as to the responsibility of the clean up, Rule 2-3 says, "The officials jurisdiction extends through periods when the game may be momentarily stopped for any reason."
Rule 3 Section 7 gives us some help with, "The referee shall not permit any team member to participate if in the referee's judgement any item constitutes a safety concern."
So it's up to us to make sure the court is "approved."
I hope these questions sparked thoughts in your head about what we can do to better ourselves as officials to serve this game we all love. If you have questions about this or anything else don't hesitate to e-mail me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Your Rules Gazette staff writers,
James Frazee and Dylan Koury
