[BillyMac]

IAABO 2009-10 Refresher Exam
#50. Substitute B-6 enters the court while the ball is in control of Team A and while the ball is live and the clock is running. The officials are unaware that Team B has six players in the game. B-6 returns to the bench after which Team A commits a violation. The scorer now informs the officials that Team B had six players on the court. The referee rules that no technical foul can be charged. Is the referee correct? IAABO Answer: No (10-2-2 and 2-11-3)

The rulebook says that this infraction is penalized if discovered while being violated: 10-1-6: A team shall not: Have more than five team members participating simultaneously. PENALTY: (Art. 6) Penalized if discovered while being violated.

Here's a pertinent casebook play:
10.1.6 SITUATION (Under the Heading "Six In Game"): With Team A leading 51 to 50, a held ball is called. A6 properly reports and enters the game. Time is then called by Team A. The clock shows two seconds remaining in the game. After play is resumed by a throw-in, the officials: (a) recognize that A has six players competing, but cannot get the clock stopped; or (b) do not notice Team A has six players on the court. Following the throw-in, time expires. Team B now reports to the officials that Team A had six players on the court. RULING: In (a), since one of the officials had knowledge that Team A had six players participating simultaneously and this was detected prior to time expiring, a technical foul is assessed against Team A. In (b), since it was not recognized by either official, but was called to their attention after time had expired, it is too late to assess any penalty.

Here's an additional casebook play, however, it's under the heading "Not Being Beckoned":
10.2.2 SITUATION (Under the heading "Not Being Beckoned"): During a live ball and with the clock running, substitute A enters the court. RULING: A technical foul is charged if recognized by an official before the ball becomes live following the first dead ball.

Two questions:
1) According to the rule, as written, the infraction is penalized if discovered while being violated, so in the Refresher Exam question, isn't it too late to penalize since B-6 is no longer participating when the scorer informs the officials? He's on the bench, during a dead ball for a violation.
2) Does the communication from the scorer count as being "discovered" by the officials? The officials were unaware that there was a sixth player, so they never really "discovered" the sixth player.

I always believed, possibly in error, that in order to call this sixth-man infraction the officials themselves must observe, or "discover", the sixth payer participating, not simply be told by another party, and that this infraction must be enforced while the sixth player is participating, that is, when he's no longer participating, it's to late too penalize.

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