If I ruled men’s college basketball I would change the shot clock from 35 seconds to 24 seconds.
Men’s college basketball has the longest shot clock of any major basketball league.
The NBA [National Basketball Association] and WNBA [Womens National Basketball Association] have a 24 second shot clock and women’s college basketball has a 30 second shot clock.
Basketball fans can agree that the college games are the most exciting to watch. The players are not getting paid and are playing solely for the love of the game. This makes the passion and emotion come out much more than the professional level.
The atmosphere and pageantry of college basketball is something that cannot be matched by any other league.
Coaches and defense dominate the college game, while the NBA is more of a player’s league where the superstars dominate.
Kyle Bailey / Photo Editor
When players are first making the transition into the NBA, one of the first things that they will tell a reporter when asked about the change is the adjustment to the shot clock.
If the shot clock were the same [24 seconds] in college as it is in the NBA it would better prepare players who are making the jump to the next level. Instead, college basketball lacks in a spot where it could improve its great sport.
If the shot clock were changed to 24 seconds in the college game, there would be more emphasis put on offense rather than defense.
This would make games much more exciting and would also speed up the games.
So often we see players passing the ball around for the full 35 seconds until finally letting a shot go.
This occurs a lot towards the end of games. If the clock were reduced then it would put more pressure on the players to create something on offense, as well as value the ball.
Teams will often pass the ball around continuously at the end of the game in order to kill time.
That makes the game boring. This is the point in the game when the fans are screaming at the defense, “GET THE BALL,” which discourages the defense and again makes the game less exciting.
Decreasing the amount of time on the shot clock would give the defense a better opportunity to steal the ball.
Though it makes the players work harder and faster, it gives them a better chance to challenge the offensive team.
This makes the game more difficult for both teams, since there is less time and both teams would have to score faster.
Endurance and physical/mental toughness would play a huge part in what players do during crucial times.
Another issue with college basketball is that some games are simply just not fun to watch. There have been many low scoring games that should not occur in basketball.
According to an article published by ESPN on Jan. 27, 2013, last season in a game between Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan the final score was 42 to 25. What is even crazier, is that Northern Illinois was held to a record low four points in the first half. Earlier in the season Northern Illinois’ team was held to five points in the first half.
The lowest score by a team in the shot clock era [1985-present] in division one basketball was 20 by Saint Louis in 2008.
Overall, men’s college basketball should reduce its shot clock to 24 seconds so that players will be able to make an easier transition to the professional level, whether it be the NBA or overseas.
It would also make the games move faster because the teams would have to put more of an emphasis on offense and value the ball during their possession.
Mike Miezejeski can be contacted at mmiezejeski@keene-equinox.com
