Actually, I don't see any reason keeping the 10 second count as long as there's a shot clock. The point of the 10 second count is to propel the action forward, which is what the shot clock does as well.

Of course, the best thing about not having a 10 second count in the women's game is to give the fans something to yell about when the shot clock gets down to 19. :-)

Hang in there, Kelvin. I don't think I'm stepping on any toes when I say that all of us deeply appreciate your commitment and sacrifice and fervently hope for your quick and safe return.

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You can have the 5 second count anywhere on the court in NCAA women's, including the b/c. However, it is a different rule than NFHS, in that it only applies to a player who is holding the ball, and the defensive player must be within 3 ft. Also, in NCAA men's and women's, the closely guarded rule specifically mentions a "guarding stance." So you wouldn't call closely guarded in a situation where the defender is merely standing within the 6 ft (men) or 3 ft (women) and facig the player with the ball.

RULE 9-12/VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES
Section 13. Closely Guarded
(2) (Women) A player in control of the ball, but not dribbling, is closely guarded when an opponent is in a guarding stance within 3 feet. A closely guarded violation shall occur when the player in control of the ball holds the ball for more than five seconds.

I don't agree with your interpretation on this Mick
 

I remember your reference to the post in the case book about screening teammates.

9.10.1 Sit D refers to more than one teammate keeping an opponent from guarding the person with the ball. In that case a defender within 6 feet of the player with the ball is considered closely guarding that person.

My post was referring to a simple screen and the opponent moves behind the screen to go around it. In that case, there is a brief moment when the defender could be considered guarding the screener and not the person with the ball. The way I have been trained is that will stop the count and it is restarted when the defender emerges from the screen and is back on the ball.

I can see it both ways, so this should provide some interesting discussion.

Damian
I can't see how you could make this blanket judgment. It often is not this way.

We play man and we try to never switch (obviously it can't always be helped). When we have A1 dribbling, our B1 defending, A2 screening and B2 defending screener, we want B1 to get under the screen and prevent A1 from getting a direct line to the basket. B2 is supposed to "hedge" or step out from the screner to slow or change the direction of A1 to allow B1 to prevent the penetration. At no time does B1 slow to "guard" A2. B1 is trying at all times to maintain good defensive position on A1 despite A2 being between B1 and the ball.

B2 stepping out would maintain the closely guarded count anyway, but if B2 fails to step out and B1 remains within the 6 ft, B1 is never guarding A2. B1 is just trying to avoid A2. There is no rule that says you are guarding the player closest to you. I think if you are observing the defense, you will know who they are guarding and whether or not you should maintain the count.

Re: I don't agree with your interpretation on this Mick
 

There is also no requirement that a defender be guarding only one opponent. Even if you consider the defender to be guarding the screener, they can still be guarding the dribbler.

If, however, the defender gets stopped by the screen and the dribbler continues away and the defender hustles to catch up and regain a guarding position, that would be a case for restarting the count.

agreed on the second point Cameron. If stopped by the screen, a defender is no longer in a guarding position in all likelihood, kind of like stopping the count if an offensive player has driven by a defender. Just staying within 6 ft is not the only requirement.

Just FYI, it's a convention to refer to the offensive team as "A" and the defensive team as "B" - helps us keep things straight.