League Rules

General Rules for 5-on-5

1. Game referees will officiate all 1st-3rd grade divisional games with the intent to both manage the game and teach the game as needed. Game referees will officiate all 4th and 5th grade divisional games with more of an emphasis on the rules of basketball. 
2. Before each game throughout the season, a brief meeting between all of the coaches and the referee will take place to greet one another, review any specific rules, share any team issues, ask any questions and recite the League pledge.
3. Baskets shall be 8’ for grades 1-2, 9’ for third grade and 10’ for the 4th-5th grade divisions.
4. The 1st-3rd grade divisions will use a 27.5 size ball. The 4-5th grade divisions will use the 28.5 size ball.
5. Coaches must give all players equal playing time during all regular season games. The league reserves the right to address and penalize any non-compliance. 
6. Players must tuck their shirts into their shorts and pull their shorts up to their waists. No jewelry or earrings are allowed. 
7. Coaches and team personnel are responsible for supervising their players.
8. Coaches must stay in front of their bench area while coaching
9. Coaches are also responsible for ensuring that their bench areas are clean of debris at the end of the game.
10. Fighting shall result in an immediate ejection and possible future penalties.
11. Any excessive complaining or verbal abuse displayed by a coach will result in an immediate ejection by the referee or a We Not Me representative. The coach will not be allowed back in the gym for future games until there has been a discussion with League directors.
12. In regard to any foul that the referee deems excessive or flagrant: the player will be asked to sit out for a cooling off period. Dismissal from the game is also possible depending on the nature of the foul, warnings given, how the player handles it, etc. If the referee feels as though further action needs to be taken beyond the scope of that game, they will notify League Directors and a conversation will be scheduled with the coach involved and league staff.

Game Procedures for 5-on-5

1. Each game shall consist of four 10-minute quarters and be played with a running clock, except for:
1. The last one minute of the first half, the clock will stop on every whistle
2. The last one minute of the second half, the clock will stop on every whistle
3. The clock will stop while teams are lining up and shooting free throws (5v5 only)
4. Any unusual delays - injury, kids tying shoes, etc. 
2. If we do not have two teams by 10 minutes past the scheduled start of the game, the game shall be shortened to 15-minute halves and/or the game can begin with 4 players versus 4 players.
3. The time between quarters shall be one minute and half-time shall be no more than three minutes.
4. Games shall begin with a jump ball in the center of the court and shall continue with the alternating-possession procedure.
5. The first overtime session shall last two minutes. Any additional overtime sessions shall last 1 minute unless both coaches agree to end the game in a tie. All sessions shall begin with a jump ball. There will be a maximum of two overtimes periods.
6. Each team shall be entitled to use two time-outs per half and one time-out per overtime session. Each time-out shall last no more than 45 seconds.
7. Substitutions may only be made during stoppages of play. We highly recommend both teams sub half-way through each quarter and at the end of each quarter for efficient use of time. 
8. Any player charged with five fouls is no longer eligible to play in the game.
9. The offense must advance the ball past half court within ten seconds.
10. At half-time, the scoreboard may be reset to 0-0 if one team is leading by an excessive amount of points. The actual score of the game is always kept at the scorer’s table in the scorebook. 

Offensive Rules for 5-on-5

1. Three pointers
1. For 1st-3rd grade divisions: all shots from the field will count as 2 points. 
2. For 4th and 5th grade divisions: In the event that a game is officiated by only one ref, if the ref does not see a player’s feet on what appears to be a 3-point attempt, the ref can ask one of the coaches if they saw the player’s feet to determine if the shot was a 3-pointer or a 2-pointer.  Otherwise, the shot will count as a 2-pointer.  
2. Free Throws
1. During free throws, the players along the lane line cannot enter the lane until the ball is released from the shooter.  The shooter cannot enter the lane until the ball crosses the plane of the rim.  
2. Teams shall shoot one-and-one on the opposing team’s seventh team foul in a half and shoot two shots on the opposing team’s tenth team foul in a half.
3. 1st & 2nd Grade League: players, if needed, can be positioned closer to the basket as advised by the referee or approximately 2 feet inside the FT line. In the interest of time the referee can suggest free throws not be a part of the game for the first few weeks of play.
4. 3rd Grade League: players, if needed, can be positioned closer to the basket as advised by the referee or approximately 1 foot inside the FT line
3. With regards to “3 seconds in the lane”, it is our intention to enforce this rule.  It is the responsibility of the coaches to teach the concept and rule of “3 seconds in the lane” during team practices.
1. In our 1st - 3rd grade division, we will enforce this rule after repeated warnings and/or when the offense gains a clear advantage over the defense due to the violation.
2. In our 4th and 5th grade division, we will enforce this rule after just a few warnings and/or when the offense gains a clear advantage over the defense due to the violation.    
4. Teams may not hold the ball in the free zone for more than 10 seconds.

Defensive Rules for 5-on-5

1. Grades 1-2: Man to man defense is mandatory (see 3v3 Guidelines for more information on defense). The league will provide colored wristbands for all teams to assist in teaching man to man. 
2. For Grades 3-5: coaches can choose the defense they want to play based on their team personnel but it is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED that all teams play man-to-man. Based on our research and observations, we feel very strongly that if you are able to teach your players man-to-man, they will learn the critical skills of how to play team basketball. 
3. “Steal the pass, not the dribble” Rule:
1. Grades 1-2: A defensive player may not steal the ball off a dribble or attempt to steal the ball off a dribble. They may steal off of a pass. Players will be warned first and any subsequent violations will result in a loss of possession.
2. Grade 3: If a game is lop-sided and/or a defender is clearly taking advantage of a poor dribbler, the referee will enact the "steal the pass, not the dribble" rule. The referee will always encourage the defender to play defense by sliding their feet and not to reach and swat at the ball. 
3. Grades 4-5: no restrictions
4. FREE ZONE
1. 1st-2nd Grade Division
1. The area outside the 3-point line is known as the “Free Zone”. No defense or defender is allowed in the “Free Zone”.  
2. Full-court pressing is NOT allowed.  
2. 3rd Grade Division
1. The area outside the 3-point line is known as the “Free Zone”. No defense or defender is allowed in the “Free Zone”.  
2. With 1 minute to go in the second half, the defense is allowed to guard the offense outside of the free zone but not beyond half-court. If a team is leading by 10 points or more, they cannot play defense in the free zone even in the last minute.  
3. Full-court pressing is NOT allowed.  
3. 4th Grade Division
1. The area outside the 3-point line is known as the “Free Zone”.  No defense or defender is allowed in the “Free Zone” at the beginning of their defensive possession. 
2. Once the offense advances the ball past the three point line, the defense may defend the offense if the offense passes the ball back into the free zone.  
3. Due to the free zone / no pressure rule rendering the defensive team to remain behind the 3 point line until the basketball has crossed the 3 point line, shooting a 3 point shot before the basketball crosses the 3 point line is an unfair advantage for the offensive team.  Therefore, an offensive player cannot shoot a 3 point shot until the ball has crossed the 3 point line. First offense, basket does not count and the offense gets the ball back. Second or more offense results in a turnover.
4. With 1 minute to go in each half, the defense is allowed to guard the offense outside of the free zone but not beyond half-court. If a team is leading by 10 points or more, they cannot play defense in the free zone until the offense advances the ball past the three point line.  
5. If the ball goes out of bounds the free zone will reset.
6. Full-court pressing is NOT allowed.  
4. 5th Grade Division
1. There is no “Free Zone” in our 5th grade division.  Defense can be played anywhere on the court.  
2. Full Court Pressing is allowed unless a team goes up by 10 points or more.  If a team has a 10-point lead, that team must stop pressing full-court but they can begin playing defense at half-court.  If a team goes up by 20 points, no pressing (either full-court or half-court) is allowed and that team must pull back their defense to the 3-point line.