GAME TIME
- The game will be played with four (4) 12 min quarters. The last two (2) minutes of the 4th quarter (including overtime) will have a regulation stop-clock unless a team leads by ten (10) or more points. Clock will STOP for all fouls, violations, successful field goals, injuries, team and official timeouts.
- One (1) minute break between quarters, two (2) minutes at halftime
- Mandatory substitutions at the six (6) minute mark during the 1st 2nd and 3rd quarters of regular season and playoff games.
- Each team must have four (4) players to start.
- Substitution Check-In Rule
- All substitutes must report to the scorer’s table before entering the game. Players may not substitute directly from the bench or enter the court until the scorer’s table has acknowledged them and a referee has called them into the game.
- No last-minute substitutions from the bench will be permitted, including during a running clock. This prevents captains or teams from using unreported substitutions to delay, kill, or bleed time from the game clock.
- A player who enters without properly checking in may be removed from the game and the team may receive a technical foul. The game clock may be adjusted at the officials’ discretion.
- Eight (8) second half court violation.
- A twenty-four (24) second shot clock and possession rule will be in effect in the last two minutes of the game.
- Each team is allowed two (2) timeouts per half. No timeouts can be carried over to the next half. In the event of overtime, each team will be allowed one (1) timeout.
- Teams may advance the ball to half court in the final two (2) minutes if desired
- No jewelry allowed while playing. Anyone playing with jewelry will receive a technical foul if told twice.
- Free throws – The ball is in play once the shooter releases the ball.
- Injuries – Players are allowed to re-enter the game after an injury. Abuse of this rule will result in penalties for the team, which may apply during the current game and carry over to future games.
- No Countdown of Game Clock
- To maintain fairness and sportsmanship, players, coaches, and spectators are not permitted to verbally count down the game clock (e.g., “5, 4, 3…”) when only a few seconds remain in the quarter, half, or game.
- First offense: 1 technical free throw will be awarded to the opposing team and retains possession of the ball.
- Second offense: 2technical free throws will be awarded to the opposing team and retains possession of the ball.
- To maintain fairness and sportsmanship, players, coaches, and spectators are not permitted to verbally count down the game clock (e.g., “5, 4, 3…”) when only a few seconds remain in the quarter, half, or game.
- No Jersey Penalty
- To ensure professionalism and team unity, all players must wear their official league-issued uniform during games.
- If a player does not have their complete uniform:
- Option 1 (Default): The opposing team will be automatically awarded 2 points at the start of the game and gains possession.
- Option 2 (Repeat or Severe Violations): The player may be required to sit out the entire game.
- Exceptions may be granted only if cleared by league officials before game time (e.g., emergency situations).
- If a player does not have their complete uniform:
- To ensure professionalism and team unity, all players must wear their official league-issued uniform during games.
- Only the team captain is authorized to call the game.
DEFENSE
- Zone and man-to-man defense both allowed
- No defensive 3-second violation
OVERTIME
- 1st overtime will consist of two (2) min (stop clock); 2nd overtime will consist of one (1) min; 3rd overtime will be sudden death (1st team to score wins)
- One (1) timeout per overtime
FOULS
- Each player is allowed six (6) personal fouls. *Technical fouls do NOT count as personal fouls, but they do count toward ejection. Any player receiving two (2) technical fouls are automatically ejected from the game.
- Ejected individuals must leave the facility for the remainder of the game.
- During all free throw attempts, only three (3) defensive players are permitted to occupy the designated lane spaces.
- Five (5) team fouls per quarter triggers automatic two (2) free throws.
- In the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, if a team has committed fewer than four team fouls during that period, the next foul will be considered a foul to give. The penalty is triggered on their second foul within those two minutes, regardless of the number of fouls accumulated in the first twelve minutes.
- Flagrant 1: Two (2) free throws will be awarded to the opposing team and maintain possession.
- Flagrant 2: Player must sit out three (3) min. Two (2) free throws will be awarded to the opposing team and maintain possession. Player is ejected from game.
- Landing Space Rule: If a defender recklessly closes out and invades the space of an airborne shooter—causing the player to land on the defender’s foot and turn their ankle—it is assessed as a Flagrant 1 Foul Penalty subject for additional further review.
- Take Foul or Clear Path two (2) free throws awarded to the fouled team (any player can shoot it), plus possession of the ball.
- Offensive fouls: Count as personal fouls for the player but NOT as team fouls.
- Technical Foul: The opposing team is awarded (1) one free throw (not two).
STOP CLOCK
- Made Baskets: The game clock stops after a made basket, in the final two (2) minutes of the 4th quarter or in overtime.
- Throw-ins/Inbounds: Following a stoppage, the game clock starts when the ball is legally touched on the court.
- “Walking the Dog”: Players often allow an inbounded ball to roll up the court without touching it, as the 24-second shot clock does not start until a player touches the ball, while the game clock continues to run.
- Trent Tucker Rule: A minimum of 0.3 seconds must remain on the clock for a player to catch and shoot the ball; if 0.2 or 0.1 remains, only a tip-in is possible.
STANDINGS
- Team standings will be determined by win/loss column then head-to-head competition during the regular season. In case of ties, quotient system will apply points for (+) less points against (-). Ex. Add up the total points scored by each team and divide it by the total points allowed by each team. The team with the highest quotient either is the higher seed, moves on, or advances to the next round.
- Defaulted games will result in a 10 point carry over to the quotient scores.
PLAYOFFS
- Four (4) games minimum played to be eligible for playoffs
*IMPORTANT NOTICE*
- PBLCA has a ZERO tolerance for fighting. Fighting will result in an automatic ejection of the players involved. In addition, player/s may be banned from the league/tournament and future leagues after review by the commissioner.
- ALL protests must be submitted by the team captain ONLY via email to ron.hao@gmail.com. The incident must have direct bearing on the outcome of the game. In-game complaints must be by the team captain to a referee or league officer.
- ALL players are required to show proof of age (we only accept drivers license or original/certified birth certificate).
- NBA rules will govern all the rules not covered by PBLCA.