New-York tribune., 1909-12-05
NO MORE HUGGING
TENDS TO ROUGHNESS
Rules Framed to Improve
Game of Basketball.

More than thirty representatives from
nearly all the institutions in the East in
which basketball is played according to the
collegiate rules met in a conference with
the basketball rules committee in the Co
lumbia University gymnasium yesterday af-
ternoon- All the changes which have been
made in the rules since last season were
carefully gone over and explained by Harry
Fisher. Of Columbia: W. r. Hyatt, OF Yale;
Lieutenant J. W. StilweH OF West Point.
and Ralph Morgan. OF Pennsylvania. who
took turns in illustrating the rules. The
various captains. coaches, managers and Of
ficials discussed the changes and offered
suggestions.
An effort has been made TO reduce and
eliminate the roughness which has crept
into the game. and special legislation has
been directed this year against personal
contact in the game. Hereafter men will
be supposed TO follow the ball more closely
and give I'd the close hJgging system of
guarding that has brought the game into
disrepute In trying to get after the ball
the players must now strike at the ball II
they want to get it away from the opposing
player, and not at the man. as many play
ers have done In the past
Keinath. who is coaching the Pennsyl-
vania five this season. announced as his
opinion that the changes in the rules would
result in a reduction in the scoring and that
the game would cOrrespOndingly lose in In
terest from the spectators point OF view
He said that the spectators preferred plenty
OF shooting. and with the guards having the
advantage over the forwards. as will be the
case under the changed rules, scoring will
be small.
Special attention is to be given this year
10 the referees. Hyatt. chairman OF the
rules committee. cautioned the officials
present against allowing holding and
warned them to enforce the rules strictly
A list Of approved officials in all parts OF
the country. such as has been the custom
with the football rules committee, has been
prepared and sent to all the institutions
where the game is played. A method OF
checking the work of these officials has
been devised by the committee After each
game the captains OF the two teams are
required to send in criticism OF the work
Of the official stating briefly his qualifca-
tions for the work.
In order 70 prevent unnecessary delay a
team may ask for time out only three times
in each half. and no further time will be
allowed. even when a man is injured or
forced to leave the game for some other
y
player touches the boundary line he will be
called out OF bounds. instead Of when he
puts one foot entirely out OF the court, as
the old rule stated When the ball is re-
turned from out OF bounds without being
touched BY a player ii is considered dead.
lot OF time was taken up I'm discussing
a proposed rule fOrbidding a player 10 make
a leap or take long step before drfbbling,
passing or throwing for the basket and the
rule was modified that the ball has to
leave the players hand before the foot
brought up from behind touches the floor
Those taking part in the conference were:
West Point. Lieutenants Stilweu and Mill
ken; Pennsylvania. Keinath. Lawrence
Brice and Ralph Morgan: Princeton.
Shorter; Cornell. AfTeldi Dartmouth. Lane;
Yale. Hyatt. Platt AMI Eames: Wesleyan,
Hayward: Annapolis. Lush: Syracuse. Kill
patrick; Williams. Wallace: College OF the
City OF New York, Palmer: St Johns Col
lege. Brooklyn. Yates. Tracy and O'Shea;
MOntclair High School. Dixon: Manhattan
College. Gearing: Columbia. Fisher Kiendl.
Goodman. Townsend and Lee; St Francis
Xaviers College Peggy: President Shelter
OF the Eastern Basketball League and
Thomson and Quigg, OF the New York Ath-
Ietic Club.