NCAA Emphasis on palming/carrying

[bearclause]

I was a little bit surprised that a player I watched was called about five times for carries on several high dribbles over his shoulder. Some seemed legit, but there were other times where he seemed guilty of nothing other than dribbling it high with his hand on top of the ball at all times. I don't really understand how this is being enforced. Here's the text from the 2007 NCAA rulebook:

Palming (Illegal Dribble)

Although steps were taken to control palming in the 2005-06 basketball season, additional attention needs to be directed in eliminating the illegal maneuver of “palming the ball” from our game. “Palming” or “carrying” the ball places the defensive player at a distinct disadvantage while according the dribbler a sizeable advantage inconsistent with the spirit and intent of the rules. The dribbler, who during a high or hesitation dribble, causes the ball to come to rest and then pushes or pulls the ball either to the side or in front of him commits an indefensible violation which must be called.

“Palming” is an illegal maneuver. When the ball comes to rest in the
dribblers’ hand, by rule, the dribble has ended. Continuing to dribble after the ball has come to rest in the hand is a violation and should be called.

And Rule 4 - Section 18 - Article 4:

Art. 4. The dribble ends when:

a. The dribbler catches or carries/palms the ball by allowing it to come to rest in one or both hands;

b. The dribbler touches the ball with both hands simultaneously;

c. An opponent bats the ball; or

d. The ball becomes dead.

A.R. 77. A1, while advancing the ball by dribbling, manages to keep a hand in contact with the ball until it reaches its maximum height. A1 maintains such control as the ball descends, pushing it to the playing court at the last moment; however, after six or seven bounces, A1’s hands are in contact with the ball and the palm of the hand on this particular dribble is skyward. RULING: Violation. The ball has come to rest on the hand while the palm and the fingers are facing upward, so the dribble has ended. When the player continues to move or stand still and dribble, the player has committed a violation by dribbling a second time. (See Rule 9-7.)