It’s Time for Boys’ Coaches to Take Shot at Using Clock

The debate has been gaining the momentum of a fastbreak for more than 25 years.

Should there be a shot clock in high school boys’ basketball games in California?

The arguments for and against haven’t changed much in two decades. And neither have the rules. Yet.

Those in favor of a shot clock point to every other level of basketball played in the hemisphere and say, “Everybody else uses one, we should too.”

But the purists remain opposed to the change. Put in a clock, change the essence of strategy, competition and most importantly, teamwork.

“When you put the clock in, all you do is make it a show,” Birmingham Coach Al Bennett said. “Kids go up and down the floor and they throw up shots they couldn’t make in H-O-R-S-E.”

Perhaps the debate will rage on for years, but on Feb. 7 the State Federated Council will put it to a vote, with input from all 10 CIF sections. If approved for the 1997-98 season, another vote will be taken regarding whether the shot clock should be 35 or 30 seconds.

The Southern Section, which controls 26% of the vote because it is the largest section in the state, conducted a survey in June 1995. Of 442 principals, athletic directors, coaches and assistants who responded, 76% favored a shot clock. When given a choice on the shot clock’s length of time, 35 seconds was favored (35%), over 30 (27%) and 45 seconds (26%).

Still, the Southern Section is undecided.

“I don’t have any hint on this one,” said Dean Crowley, Southern Section commissioner. “It could go either way.”

On Thursday, at its regular section council meeting, members will take a final vote and relay the results to the state meeting in February.

“In all honesty, I have had a gut feeling on everything, always,” Crowley said. “On this one, I just don’t know.”

City Section Commissioner Barbara Fiege echoed Crowley’s sentiments, partly because the result of the City survey had a poor and split response. Of 60 City and Magnet school coaches who were polled by letter, only 20 responded and they were equally divided.

“I guess the other 40 don’t care,” Fiege said.

A straw vote at a City coaches’ meeting in December produced a similar result: a 50-50 split, Fiege said. The City Section controls 9% of the state vote. The City’s governing board will decide Monday which way they’ll be voting in February.

The indecision among coaches and administrators is the result of the different coaching strategies used in basketball. But some coaches can’t decide which side of the fence they are on.

Last Wednesday, Cleveland guard Daniel Yang was told to hold the ball for 3 1/2 minutes in the fourth quarter of a Northwest Valley Conference game against El Camino Real.

The Cavaliers, who run an up-tempo offense, had a one-point lead with 5:31 left and hoped to draw El Camino Real out of a zone defense.

Here’s the surprise: Cleveland first-year Coach Andre Chevalier is in favor of a shot clock.

“I felt crazy,” Chevalier said. “I know the crowd wants to see basketball. I’m embarrassed because that’s not my style. I want to get it up and down the court.”

But for 3 1/2 minutes, no ball bounced and no shoes squeaked on the hardwood floor. All that could be heard was the small crowd shouting its disapproval of the stall tactics.

El Camino Real Coach Neils Ludlow, who also favors a shot clock, chose to let the game clock run down to two minutes before putting pressure on the ball.

“I just figured that’s a good chance for us,” Ludlow said. “A one-point ballgame with two minutes left, we’re right in the hunt. I didn’t want to pull out [of a zone] right away and all of a sudden get blown out by a whole bunch.”

During the stall, Cleveland’s Donald Holt and El Camino Real’s Elan Buller did have a chance to discuss their college plans near the free-throw line. All the while, there was Yang, the ball resting on his hip and the clock ticking down.

One of the main reasons a shot clock was implemented by the NBA in the mid-1950s was to speed up the game. No game illustrated that need more than when the Fort Wayne Pistons defeated the Minneapolis Lakers, 19-18, on Nov. 22, 1950.

There hasn’t been a rash of low-scoring games in boys’ basketball, but as long as there’s no clock, the opportunity to hold the ball is always there.

A few years ago, Birmingham went to a four-corner stall for 7 1/2 minutes in a game. But Bennett, in his eighth year at Birmingham, defends the strategy, no matter how bored the fans get.

“In high school, it gives teams a chance to beat teams that are much better than them,” Bennett said. “It makes teams play together.”

Perhaps the best argument for a shot clock is this: every other level of basketball uses one, so why should boys’ basketball be any different?

And then there’s the Title IX argument. If the boys don’t have to have one, why should the girls? OK, so that’s stretching it a bit.

Some opposed to a shot clock use antiquated equipment as an argument. Reportedly, many older clocks, those purchased 10 to 15 years ago, can only be programmed for 30-second settings used in girls’ games.

Opponents say it would cost too much to replace their outdated clocks. This is the weakest of all arguments.

I see two options here. One, approve the shot clock and bring boys’ basketball up to speed with the rest of civilization.

Or eliminate time altogether for the boys. No game clock. First team to 50, have to win by two points. Oh, and winner’s outs.

Back for more: Last season, followers of City Section boys’ soccer were stunned when Sherman Oaks CES, the Magnet Conference champion, was given the No. 5 seed in the 32-team playoffs.

They were even more surprised when the Knights beat Washington in a first-round match and played Chatsworth fairly close in a second-round defeat.

Well, Sherman Oaks CES (7-0-1, 7-0-1 in conference play) is at it again. The Knights tied Lincoln and San Fernando and narrowly lost to Van Nuys in a preseason tournament and are tied for the Magnet Conference lead.

Rudy Zermeno, a 23-goal scorer last season, has graduated but the team returns nine starters. Sophomore forward Mario Macias, in his first varsity season, leads the Knights with 14 goals, and senior midfielder David Campos has seven.

“I hope we made a point with our playoff performance last season,” Coach Dan McDonnell said. “And this season’s team is better.”

Staff writer Tris Wykes contributed to this story.