General Information

The National Federation of High School Basketball Rules will be used with Tulane University modifications.
Participants are subject to all of the policies and procedures in the Intramural Handbook.
Games will consist of 2 teams, 6 players per team.
1. Co-rec teams must have 3 women on the court at all times.
2. Games may start with 5 players.

Equipment

All participants should wear proper recreational attire. This includes t-shirts, gym shorts, wind or sweat paints, and athletic closed toe shoes.
Jewelry or sun glasses shall not be worn.
Headwear that contains knots, hard or stiff material including billed hats are prohibited.
Team jersey will be provided. If a team has their own jersey they must be all be the same color, and have a minimum of a 5 inch number visible on the back of the jersey.
Any hard braces must be covered and padded.
Participants wearing casts are prohibited from intramural play.
The final determination regarding legal equipment will be made by the Intramural Supervisor present at the game.
The game will be played with 6 rubber coated foam dodgeballs.

Time Regulations

A match will consist of the best 2 out of 3 games.
1. A game will be 7 minutes in length.
2. The clock will run continuously with the exception of: injuries, referees’ time, and time-outs.
3. Each team will receive one 60 second time out per game.
4. If a game equal number of players remain after regulation play, a 3 minute sudden death overtime period will be played.
Overtime
1. The overtime period will begin with the same number of players that ended the game in a tie.
2. All overtime periods will begin with equal number of “balls in hand” behind a teams’ end line.
3. The first team to eliminate any one opposing player will be declared the winner.
4. There are no timeouts in overtime.
5. Substitutions must be made prior to the start of the overtime period.
6. The sudden death format continues until a winner is determined.

Substitutions

During timeouts, teams may substitute players.
Substitutes may be players who did not start the game, or players who wish to re-enter after having be declared out.
Co-Rec males cannot substitute for females.

Boundaries

During play, all players must remain within the boundary lines.
Players may pass through there end lines only to retrieve stray balls.
When retrieving a ball, the player must immediately re-enter the playing field through the end line only.
A player not immediately re-entering the playing area will be declared out.
A player may be handed a ball provided the receiving player is in bounds.
A player that is out of bounds may not be handed a ball.
A player shall not:
1. Have any part of their body contact the playing surface on or over a side line.
2. Exit or reenter the field through a side line.
3. Leave the playing field to avoid being hit by or attempt to catch, a ball.
4. Have a part of their body cross over the center line and contact the ground on their opponents’ side of the court.
5. During the opening rush players must cross the center line momentarily while attempting to retrieve a ball if the player is not trying to gain an advantage by doing so.
Penalty: players going out of bounds will be declared out

The Game

The team listed first on the schedule will have choice of sides to begin the match.
Teams will alternate sides following each game.
The object of the game is to eliminate all opposing players by getting them out.
An out is scored by:
1. Hitting an opposing player with a live thrown ball below the shoulders. (If a player ducks and this clearly is the reason for the player being hit above the shoulders, the player is out and the throw is considered legal).
2. Catching a live ball thrown by your opponent.
3. Causing an opponent to drop a held ball as a result of contact from a live ball. (Usually occurs when a ball is being used to block a thrown ball).
4. If a player steps out of bounds.
5. Live Ball: a thrown ball that strikes, or is caught by an opposing player without/before contacting the ground, another player or ball.
A player may block a thrown ball with a ball being held, provided the held ball is not dropped as a result of the contact with the thrown ball. (A ball deflecting off a held ball and striking the holder is no longer a live ball).

Beginning the Game

Six dodgeballs will be placed along the center line, 3 balls on the right and left of the center hash mark.
Players take position behind their end line.
On the whistle from the official, teams may approach the center line to retrieve the balls. Teams may only retrieve the balls to the right of the hash mark. If balls remain on the center line after a team has retrieved and moved their balls beyond the attack line, those balls may be retrieved by either team.
Each and every ball that is retrieved from the center line on the opening rush must be taken back beyond the attack line before the ball may be legally thrown at an opponent.
A player may carry or pass the ball into the back court beyond the attack line.

Declaring a Winner

The first team to legally eliminate all opposing players will be declared the winner.
If neither team has been eliminated by the end of regulation time, the team with the greater number of players remaining will be declared the winner.

Stalling and 5 Second Violation

A team trailing during a regulation game must be given the opportunity to eliminate an opposing player. This requires a ball to be at the disposal of the trailing team.
It is illegal for the leading team to control all the balls for more than 5 seconds. If the leading team controls all the balls they must make a legitimate effort to get at least one ball across the attack line and into the opponent’s backcourt. If this is not done within 5 seconds a violation will be called. A team may avoid a 5 second violation by throwing or rolling a ball into the opponent’s back court. This does not include throwing a ball over and through an opponent’s end line.
The 5-second count will cease, when in the opinion of the official, a ball is at the disposal of the trailing team.
A ball may be considered at a team’s disposal without being secured if, in the opinion of the official, players of the trailing team are not making a legitimate effort to do so.
The leading team may not throw at a player who, in the opinion of the official, is in the act of securing a ball (in a vulnerable position), that is on the floor after being rolled or tossed by the leading team to avoid a 5-second violation. If more than one player attempts to retrieve the same ball, all are at risk of being eliminated. The trailing team should not be placed at a disadvantage by the 5-second rule. Once the player has secured the ball and is, in the opinion of the official, able to block or throw, they may be eliminated.
Penalty for 5 second violation:
1. Fist Violation: stoppage of play and balls will be divided evenly between the team. Play will continue with balls in hand.

Second Violation: Free Throw for the opposing team. A free throw is an unobstructed throw at their opponent(s) without risk of elimination. This is possible because a caught free throw will not result in player elimination.