Multiple NCAA rules adjusted for upcoming season

Drawing charges perhaps just got easier for the game’s premier defenders.

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved moving the restricted area arc Wednesday to four feet in front of the basket, extending the arc a foot from the previous three feet. The rule change will be effective for the 2017-2018 women’s season.

For a player to draw a charge, she must be outside the arc and be in guarding position. This means that a defender cannot move or block her way into an opponent. Nope, for a player to draw a charge, she must be stationary and outside the restricted area to have a chance at drawing a charge. But if a player is within the arc when contact is made, a blocking foul will be called.

Aside from moving the restricted area arc, the panel also approved giving teams a choice as to which side of the court they want to inbound the ball after advancing it to the frontcourt.

The panel also eliminated the first half “use-it-or-lose-it” timeout, which now allows coaches to carry timeouts into the second half. Also, the 10-second backcourt will not be reset when the offense calls timeout.

Other notable rule changes were the implementation of replay for officials, particularly when an official needs to see if a player released the ball before the shot clock expired.

The panel also changed the rules for a three-second violation, saying that a player has to have both feet outside the lane to not be called for the violation.