NIT to experiment with 30-second clock, larger restricted area

With scoring nearing all-time lows, the NCAA is going to use the NIT as an incubator for a 30-second shot clock and a larger restricted area.

The NCAA is worried about college basketball becoming pointless—literally.

Last season, teams averaged 67.5 points per game—the lowest in either of the shot clock eras (45 seconds from 1985-93 and 35 seconds since then)—and the lowest since the 1951-52 season, when players wore buzzcuts and shorts that didn’t cover much.

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So the NCAA will use the NIT as a Petri dish for a 30-second clock this spring. The NCAA also announced Friday is will expand the restricted arc out to four feet from its current three to see if that will result in fewer collisions at the rim.

“Without actually implementing it in a game, you’re just talking about it in theory,” NCAA vice president of men’s basketball championships Dan Gavitt told The Associated Press. “By actually putting it in a game with good teams, great coaches, competitive situations over a three-week time period, you’ll actually get results and data that can either verify some of your theories or dispute them.”

Ah, yes, those “great coaches.”

That would be the genesis for the death of scoring in college basketball because, hey, how can a guy earn a reputation as a genius if he’s not micromanaging the air out of the basketball?

I mean, if a coach lets the players play without having a point guard pound the ball into the floor and throw the ball around the perimeter for 25 seconds, there’s no way for the TV announcers to talk about what a great, disciplined system he’s installed at old State U.

Feb 22, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Butler Bulldogs guard Rotnei Clarke (15) is called for a charging foul against Saint Louis Billikens guard Kwamain Mitchell (3) at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Saint Louis defeats Butler 65-61. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Current Brooklyn Nets coach Lionel Hollins—whose teams in the NBA aren’t exactly known for the amount of burned rubber they leave on the court with the pace at which they play—found the college game to be unwatchable when his son, Austin Hollins, was playing at Minnesota.

“I watched Wisconsin and Minnesota play down the stretch and I couldn’t take it,” Hollins said in 2011. “They just hold the ball and hold the ball and try to get a shot with 10 seconds on the clock.”

Once upon a time, the NCAA used to experiment with new rules in early-season events such as the preseason NIT or the Maui Invitational. But since those are now made-for-TV extravaganzas, the NCAA bowed to their broadcast partners to not mess with the formula.

That, and premier teams would prefer to be running experiments when they are playing Directional Tech in a game they’ll win by 50 just by rolling the ball onto the court.

Again, it’s hard for a coach to be recognized as a genius if he’s having to futz with learning new rules for games against opponents that might actually fight back.

Gavitt said the NIT will provide more evenly matched conditions to test the new rules out, with the added benefit being that people might actually notice the NIT is happening—a sharp contrast from most years.

“I think that’s a nice potential secondary benefit of this decision,” Gavitt said. “It isn’t what drove this decision by any stretch. But sure. There are good teams, great coaches, great players. The more attention we can bring to the event for the benefit and experience for all those involved with it, the better.”

The shocker is the NCAA doing something actually proactive. The usual response to issues about the quality of play in college basketball the last decade has been to just blame it on one-and-done players and move on.

With scoring nearing all-time lows, the NCAA is going to use the NIT as an incubator for a 30-second shot clock and a larger restricted area.

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