Most of the time, shot clocks are a topic when an underdog beats a vastly superior opponent by holding the ball and slowing down the game.
That wasn’t the case at Park Hills Central when I went to watch the girls and boys Class 4 District 2 championship games. The host Rebels had whittled away at Farmington’s lead after the Knights were up 11-0 with 3:25 left in the first quarter of the girls game. Park Hills, the No. 1 seed, charged back and took its first lead with 3:54 left in the third. Junior Sophia Horton gave the Rebels a 40-35 lead with 3:04 left in the quarter. They were rolling.
Then, the Rebels just stopped playing. The weird part was, Farmington (No. 2) did, too. Park Hills junior Jessica Hulsey held onto the ball at midcourt for more than two minutes. The Knights sank back into a zone defense and watched the time tick away.
Stalling in prep basketball isn’t a foul if the defense does nothing to stop it. By the end of the stall, fans on both sides were restless. The fourth quarter was played without any stalling and Park Hills came away with a 54-45 win and a district title.
But what if there had been a shot clock?
Jason West, a spokesman for the Missouri State High School Activities Association, said one of the biggest concerns about implementing shot clocks is the cost involved. However, a few years ago, all football stadiums were required to install 40-second clocks at each end.
West added that maintenance and operating costs were also drawbacks.
“This would mean finding another person or group of people that could cover that position,” West said. “Another question is, at what level do you use the system? All levels, just varsity, just high school games? So, in addition to the financial impact questions, there are also logistical questions to the implementation.”
Karissa Niehof, executive director for the National Federation of State High School Associations, wrote online on March 4 that “although there are some arguments for implementing the shot clock, the NFHS basketball rules committee … must make decisions based on what is best for the masses – the small schools with less than 100 students as well as large urban schools with 3,000-plus students. Rules changes will always be made with considerations for minimizing risks, containing costs and developing rules that are best for high school athletes.”
With Hillsboro’s loss to Park Hills Central in the District 2 championship on March 5, the high school basketball season in the county officially ended for 2019-2020.
This might be the perfect time to throw up a 3-point shot and hope our local coaches rebound with their thoughts on the matter. So, I sent out emails to several boys and girls coaches.
Here are some of their responses.
■ Jason Therrell, Festus boys coach, said he’s in favor of using a shot clock and would set it at 30 to 35 seconds.
“I believe this would enhance the quality of play at the high school level,” he said. “It could help potentially reduce fouling at the end of the game when you’re behind, it would speed up the pace of play, and it would keep a team that is ahead from holding the ball and stalling. It would also help players acclimate to the rules they would be using at the college level.”
■ St. Pius X boys coach Chris Miller said he ordered a little stall tactic against Ava in the Class 3 sectionals on March 4 in Rolla when the Lancers held the lead in the fourth quarter. Ava pulled out a late 57-56 victory.
“Let them come play us,” Miller said. “We were in the bonus, so if they fouled us, we would get the opportunity to shoot free throws. We didn’t make any plays and turned the ball over. We’ve won games we’ve put delay tactics on and used the situation where we don’t have a shot clock.”
Miller, who is on the executive board of the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association, said a shot clock would make games faster. He said the idea of a shot clock is brought up all the time.
“Who’s running the clock?” he said. “You have to have someone different to watch the shot clock. They have to know the rules.
“The biggest thing is you’re not playing basketball when you stand there and hold the ball. I agree with that, but the same thing applies when you’re playing zone defense and don’t come out and challenge the ball handler. At this point now, we’re playing chess and trying to win the game within the confines of the game.”
■ Hillsboro boys coach Dan Johnson said with proper training, he is strongly behind the addition of a shot clock. He said it adds flow to the game and an element of strategy for the coaches.
“You would see way less fouling at the end of games when the score is two to three possessions apart,” he said. “It’s easy for me to be for a shot clock because of the style of play we usually play. Within my 10 years at Hillsboro, rarely would we need 35 to 40 seconds to get a shot off; we tend to let it fly well before that. However, in 2011, when we beat Festus in the district championship, we were tied and held the ball for the last 1:30 before taking a shot that ultimately ended in an offensive rebound and a foul to give us the win.”
■ Jefferson boys head coach Sean Breeze said a clock isn’t necessary at this point.
“The shot clock was introduced to speed up the pace of the game but that’s not really what high school basketball is about,” Breeze said.
It’s a discussion that comes up every year.Should Missouri be the next state to adopt the use of shot clocks at prep basketball games? Nine other states are already using them.Most of the time, shot clocks are a topic when an underdog beats a vastly superior opponent by holding the ball and slowing down the game.That wasn’t the case at Park Hills Central when I went to watch the girls and boys Class 4 District 2 championship games. The host Rebels had whittled away at Farmington’s lead after the Knights were up 11-0 with 3:25 left in the first quarter of the girls game. Park Hills, the No. 1 seed, charged back and took its first lead with 3:54 left in the third. Junior Sophia Horton gave the Rebels a 40-35 lead with 3:04 left in the quarter. They were rolling.Then, the Rebels just stopped playing. The weird part was, Farmington (No. 2) did, too. Park Hills junior Jessica Hulsey held onto the ball at midcourt for more than two minutes. The Knights sank back into a zone defense and watched the time tick away.Stalling in prep basketball isn’t a foul if the defense does nothing to stop it. By the end of the stall, fans on both sides were restless. The fourth quarter was played without any stalling and Park Hills came away with a 54-45 win and a district title.But what if there had been a shot clock?Jason West, a spokesman for the Missouri State High School Activities Association, said one of the biggest concerns about implementing shot clocks is the cost involved. However, a few years ago, all football stadiums were required to install 40-second clocks at each end. West added that maintenance and operating costs were also drawbacks.“This would mean finding another person or group of people that could cover that position,” West said. “Another question is, at what level do you use the system? All levels, just varsity, just high school games? So, in addition to the financial impact questions, there are also logistical questions to the implementation.”Karissa Niehof, executive director for the National Federation of State High School Associations, wrote online on March 4 that “although there are some arguments for implementing the shot clock, the NFHS basketball rules committee … must make decisions based on what is best for the masses – the small schools with less than 100 students as well as large urban schools with 3,000-plus students. Rules changes will always be made with considerations for minimizing risks, containing costs and developing rules that are best for high school athletes.”With Hillsboro’s loss to Park Hills Central in the District 2 championship on March 5, the high school basketball season in the county officially ended for 2019-2020.This might be the perfect time to throw up a 3-point shot and hope our local coaches rebound with their thoughts on the matter. So, I sent out emails to several boys and girls coaches.Here are some of their responses.■ Jason Therrell, Festus boys coach, said he’s in favor of using a shot clock and would set it at 30 to 35 seconds.“I believe this would enhance the quality of play at the high school level,” he said. “It could help potentially reduce fouling at the end of the game when you’re behind, it would speed up the pace of play, and it would keep a team that is ahead from holding the ball and stalling. It would also help players acclimate to the rules they would be using at the college level.”■ St. Pius X boys coach Chris Miller said he ordered a little stall tactic against Ava in the Class 3 sectionals on March 4 in Rolla when the Lancers held the lead in the fourth quarter. Ava pulled out a late 57-56 victory.“Let them come play us,” Miller said. “We were in the bonus, so if they fouled us, we would get the opportunity to shoot free throws. We didn’t make any plays and turned the ball over. We’ve won games we’ve put delay tactics on and used the situation where we don’t have a shot clock.”Miller, who is on the executive board of the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association, said a shot clock would make games faster. He said the idea of a shot clock is brought up all the time.“Who’s running the clock?” he said. “You have to have someone different to watch the shot clock. They have to know the rules.“The biggest thing is you’re not playing basketball when you stand there and hold the ball. I agree with that, but the same thing applies when you’re playing zone defense and don’t come out and challenge the ball handler. At this point now, we’re playing chess and trying to win the game within the confines of the game.”■ Hillsboro boys coach Dan Johnson said with proper training, he is strongly behind the addition of a shot clock. He said it adds flow to the game and an element of strategy for the coaches.“You would see way less fouling at the end of games when the score is two to three possessions apart,” he said. “It’s easy for me to be for a shot clock because of the style of play we usually play. Within my 10 years at Hillsboro, rarely would we need 35 to 40 seconds to get a shot off; we tend to let it fly well before that. However, in 2011, when we beat Festus in the district championship, we were tied and held the ball for the last 1:30 before taking a shot that ultimately ended in an offensive rebound and a foul to give us the win.”■ Jefferson boys head coach Sean Breeze said a clock isn’t necessary at this point.“The shot clock was introduced to speed up the pace of the game but that’s not really what high school basketball is about,” Breeze said.