NFHS 2025-26 Basketball Comments On The Rules ...

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

The surveys also asked about potential improvements. Well, most people probably are thinking of the college rule, and we just want to be sure that there is no nuance to the rule. Just want some clarification, that is all.

With the old rule, many (but not all) of our best varsity guys (State tournament level) admitted that they never considered on the way up, or on the way down, on a ball that hit the backboard, it was always "automatically" ruled goaltending, claiming that they could never get a great angle to properly call it.

If they thought it was hard to make that call and always defaulted to an "automatic" goaltend, it may even be harder now with the new rule (depending on how it is finally written) to decide if the ball was below the ring, or above the ring, with an inch, or fractions of an inch, between the bottom of the backboard and the level of the ring.

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Maybe we need a general statement (if that's the intention of the NFHS) that once the ball hits the backboard on a field goal attempt, it's off limits, on the way up, on the way down, above the ring, below the ring, outside the cylinder (goaltending), inside the cylinder (basket interference), as long as it has a chance to go in.