New rules: Team fouls reset each quarter; no 1-and-1s

Change can be hard to accept, but basketball teams in Iowa will have a fairly major new rule to grow accustom to this season.

A new rule will see team fouls in a game reset with each quarter. In addition, the shooting of a 1-and-1 free throws situation is no more. Instead, teams will shoot two free throws at five team fouls per quarter. Individual foul rules are not impacted by this change.

The new rule has been handed down by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and adopted for use here in Iowa in the boys and girls games.

“Kind of like the shot clock, I think this is to align the game with higher levels of basketball,” said NV girls coach Brian Eisbach. “It eliminates the 1-and-1, which is an old rule. From what I’ve read, it’s just to align the high school game more with the college game.”

Eisbach said without the factor of potentially missing the front end of a 1-and-1, the end of games could look different if a game is at a one-point margin and one of the teams goes to the line to shoot free throws.

“I kind of enjoyed, with the 1-and-1, having the extra pressure, but at the same time, there were times in the old rules where teams got into late-game and they had to put a bunch of fouls up to get to the point where they could shoot,” Eisbach said. “Now there’s five fouls per quarter, so if it’s a close game and they’re calling it tight, you may see a lot more free throws and a slower end to the game, but more of a build up of drama. I think the biggest learning curve will be for the fans, then we have a different score sheet we’ll have to use because of this rule change.”

Eisbach said his team averaged 15 fouls per game, and he thinks many of those came closer to the beginning of games when the teams are feeling themselves and the officating crew for the night out.

“I think it’s going to reward the teams that are good free throw shooters,” Eisbach said. “You and I both know that if you want to make it deep into the postseason you have to make your free throws.”

Thad Tussey, the head coach for the NV/OM boys this season, says that considering less than 10% of high school players will move on to the next level, he wishes the rules would’ve stayed the same. But overall, he had similar thoughts about the change to Eisbach.

Tussey said he liked the challenge players faced having to make one shot to get another in a 1-and-1 scenario.

“Until I see five to 10 seasons of it and have experience where can compare it to what it was, I don’t see the benefit of it,” Tussey said. “I’ve heard other coaches say the change is because of a safety issue on free throw lane box outs and many injuries in a basketball game happening there. Personally, I haven’t seen a lot of games being interrupted because of injuries at the free throw lane, so I don’t know if I buy that.”

Tussey said if the college women’s game is the blueprint for this rule change, they play 10-minute quarters while high school plays 8-minute quarters, meaning there are two fewer minutes per quarter to reach the bonus and two-shot opportunities.

“Instead of it being five fouls, I would’ve liked to have seen it be four. And, I miss the scenario of the 1-and-1,” he said. “It’s an incentive or a reward, and it gives the offense a chance to increase their lead and gives the defense, which is fouling on purpose, an opportunity to limit their opposition to a one or zero-point possession. Now the shooter goes to the line knowing they have two free throws.”

Nodaway Valley and Orient-Macksburg’s girls basketball squads began practice Monday, Nov. 6 and the Nodaway Valley/O-M boys start Monday, Nov. 13.