Backing in

[Vinski]

Originally Posted by bellnier

Hi. Question from a non-referee here. Watching NCAA tournament I (sometimes) see low post dribbler back in to defender with some displacement, but I can't recall any whistles. What exactly is the rule? How much displacement is allowed before a foul is called? What tell-tale signs are there that a defender is flopping in order to try to draw a foul? Thanks. I'll hang up and listen...

This is an excellent question. I see this all the time also and wonder why it almost never gets called. In fact there is a ton of aggressive contact under the boards with the big post players that rarely gets called. Many times during the battles for rebounding position the bigger guy will “maneuver” the other guy out to gain a better position for the rebound. This is obviously a push, but hardly ever gets called unless it’s really harsh or there is some holding. What guidelines are used to determine when enough is enough with the pushing and jostling under the boards?