Held Ball Player Control

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

You've got my antennae up. Did a five second closely guarded "violation" lead to a violation or to a "jump ball"?

Robert Goodman piqued my curiosity, and not wanting to wait for Mark T. DeNucci, Sr. to climb up into his cold attic, I did some research myself.

For decades, beginning in the 1930s, if a player was closely guarded for five seconds, the official blew the whistle and called for an actual jump ball.

During the 1982-1983 season (my third season officiating), the NFHS decided to make the five-second violation a straight turnover.

The goal was to reward aggressive defense more directly and simplify the game.