New Substitution Question

[Scrapper1]

The discussion of the NCAA rule for subbing made me look real hard at 3-4-12. Here's the whole article:

A player who has been withdrawn or replaced by a substitute may re-enter the game at the next opportunity to substitute, provided that the game clock has been properly started with his or her replacement in the game.

Now, what happens if the game clock never starts while his or her replacement is in the game? Let's take the exact scenario from the other thread. Technical foul on B1. A6 enters the game to shoot the free throws, replacing A1. After the second free throw, A7 enters the game, replacing A6. Now the ball is inbounded, the clock runs and the ball is deflected out of bounds. A1 is at the table to re-enter the game. But the clock never ran while A1's replacement was in the game.

OBVIOUSLY, we're going to let A1 back in the game. So then what's the point of saying "provided that the game clock has been properly started with his or her replacement in the game"?