closely guarded

[Rich]

Legal guarding position within six feet is all that's required. Six feet is a pretty long distance -- I try to imagine laying down between the players. If the space is big enough for me to lay down, it's probably too far to be closely guarded. Anything closer, you should be counting. The better coaches will be asking for that count if you aren't making it.

I had a five-second count in my first game last Tuesday.

Rich