One of the biggest debates in college basketball is whether or not the shot clock should be reduced from its current 35 seconds. The NCAA is looking into whether it would be prudent to shorten the shot clock, and is even installing a 30-second clock which will be used at this year’s NIT. If there is a change to be made, college basketball coaches would support the move. In a poll conducted by ESPN, many college basketball coaches expressed interest in a shorter shot clock, whether it be 24 or 30 seconds.
From ESPN:
Nearly 60 percent of the nearly 500 college coaches polled by ESPN are in favor of the men’s basketball shot clock changing from 35 seconds to 30 seconds.
“The shot clock would be fine if they put it to 30,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “It would have no effect on me.”
Of 460 Division I coaches polled by ESPN on the topic, 270 (59 percent) said they would prefer the shot clock to shorten to 30 seconds. Thirty percent said they would rather it remain at 35 seconds, and 10 percent were in favor of it being changed to 24 seconds — which is also what is used in NBA and international play.
The remaining 1 percent was made up of coaches who wanted the clock set at 28 seconds or 45 seconds.
Women’s college basketball is currently using a 30-second shot clock.
“I think we should all have a 24-second shot,” Villanova coach Jay Wright told ESPN. “Consistent. It’s NBA and international. We should all learn to play the game the same way. The game is still the game. Everything you do to the game, everyone’s adjusted.”
We are only country that doesn’t have 24 seconds,” Central Florida assistant Tim Thomas added. “There are [15-year-olds] in FIBA competition all over the world that are able to play with a 24-second shot clock. But we can’t?”
The Men’s Basketball Rules Committee will meet from May 13-15 at the NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis, and it could pass a recommendation for the shot clock to be changed. If that occurs, it would also need approval from the Playing Rules Oversight Panel on June 24.
