[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Why is the foul situation in Question #58 a false double foul?

We really need to go back in history a little bit before the double foul definition was modified. Until a few years ago the definition of a double foul was what is now the definition of a double personal foul. The double foul definition was split into double personal foul and double technical foul because too many officials were forgetting that contact fouls when the ball is live are personal fouls.

The classic example of this was while A1 was dribbling the ball, A2 and B2 traded punches. There were officials that were charging these as flagrant technical fouls and awarding free throws to both teams. This was not correct. These fouls were flagrant personal fouls and because the fouls were personal foul this was a double foul and no free throws are shot for a double foul.

The NFHS and NCAA decided to modify the definition and thus was born the double personal foul and the double technical foul. But the definition for a false double foul stayed the same. Before the double foul definition was modified, what is now defined as a double technical foul was considered a false double foul because the double foul definition was what is now the double personal foul definition.

When the word double precedes the word foul in basketball it means that there are fouls committed by both teams during the time between the first foul or fouls were committed by either team and before the clock starts after the first foul or fouls were committed by either team.

The fact that there are fouls by both teams means that the situation is either a double (personal or technical) foul situation or a false double foul situation. There cannot be an overall foul situation where there are fouls by both teams during the time frame defined in the false double foul definition that is not either a double foul or a false double foul situation.

One must also remember that in a false double foul situation you can have any combination of the following types of fouls:

a) double personal foul,
b) simultaneous personal fouls,
c) double technical foul,
d) simultaneous technical fouls,
e) multiple fouls, and/or
d) false multiple fouls.