US AMATEUR RULES Send to Printer

North and South Cup Series Policies and Procedures 

 

Purpose: The purpose of policies and procedures is to develop and present an outline that will govern the North Carolina and South CupSeries and provide an equal opportunity for all member teams and organizations. 

The North and South Carolina Policies and Procedures are developed in conjunction with the National Rules. The North and South CarolinaCup series policies and procedures supersede the national rules for events that are included as a part of the North and South Carolina Cup series.      

How policies and procedures are developed: Each member team or organization can submit any recommendation of change in policy or procedure to the North or South Carolina State Office prior to the end of the season (July 31). Each recommendation is reviewed and voted on by the North and South Carolinas State Steering Committee. Changes are sent by email to the contact of record for all member teams. New policies and procedures are posted on both the North and South Carolina US Amateur Basketball websitesWhat they govern:The North and South Carolina policies and procedures govern the North and South Carolina Cup Series, which includes all weekend shootouts and qualifying tournaments that lead to and include the North and South Carolina Cup Finals (State Championship)Tournaments.     

 

Policies and Procedures 

 

Game Time   

1.1 Game time will also be forfeit time (SEE EXCEPTION BELOW).  

Exception: The tournament director or state office staff member assigned to the tournament can allow a grace period for unforeseen circumstances. (Example: Traffic conditions). This can only happen when the team is communicating its difficulties. Only the tournament director or state office staff member can forfeit a game. Officials and Site Directors do not have the authority to forfeit a game.  

1.2 Games will not start early unless both coaches agree. Neither referees nor site directors have the authority to require teams to start a game prior to the scheduled starting time.  

1.3 Pregame warm up and halftime will be 10 minutes unless games are running behind schedule, and then each may be reduced to 5 minutes.   

 

Game Ball   

2.1 Official balls for the North and South Carolina Cup Series are Baden, Wilson, Spalding, Nike, Adidas and the Official US AmateurBasketball, The Rock.   

2.2 The tournament is responsible for providing the game ball, which must be a composite or leather indoor basketball. Rubber balls are not acceptable for game use.  

2.3 Each team is responsible for its own warm up balls.    

 

Divisions of Play

3.1 There are five divisions of play available for teams in the North and South Carolina Cup Series. Power rankings determine a team’s placement in Divisions I-III.   

 

Division I   

Division II     

Division III 

School 

Recreation 

 

Tournament Play for Boys & Girls (All Grades)

4.1 Tournaments have the option to combine Pool play into one division of play per grade or offer separate divisions per grade. 

4.2 Tournaments that have combined divisions with seven or less teams entered will consist of a single division throughout pool andbracket play.  

4.3 Tournaments with combined divisions with eight or more teams will consist of one division during pool play before being divided into two separate divisions for bracket play. Division I and Division II brackets will be based on a team’s place of finish in pool play.  

4.4 In three-team pools, the first-place and second place team advances to Division I and the other team moves to Division II, in four team pools the first and second place teams move to Division I and the other two teams move to Division II. In five team pools the first and second place teams advance to Division I, the third and fourth place teams move to Division II and the fifth-place team is eliminated from the tournament. 

4.5 A team with a US Amateur Basketball power rating of 1,000 or higher that forfeits a game in pool play may not advance into Division II bracket play in any tournament. If a team with a power rating of 1,000 or higher forfeits one or more games in pool play and does not qualify for Division, I bracket play, that team will be eliminated from the tournament. If unforeseen circumstances lead to a forfeit by a team described above, a US Amateur Basketball North or South state office representative and the tournament director may waive this policy and allow the team to participate in bracket play. 

4.6 Tournament directors have the option of combining 11th and 12th grade teams into a single division, but unsigned seniors must play on 12th grade teams. 

4.7 North and South Carolina US Amateur Basketball is a grade-based program in ALL divisions. Players may play at their grade level or higher. Players may play down a grade level if they do not exceed the age exception requirement for the lower grade level. 

4.8 North and South Carolina US Amateur Basketball offers secondary medical insurance to teams. Teams are responsible for players’ medical coverage. 

 

Rosters  

5.1 A team roster may have up to 15 players (and must be cleared to play through the National ID program) and 4 total coaches / managers/ scorekeepers/administrators. All non-players MUST be members of ACA (American Coaches Association) and be issued an ACA membership virtual card to be allowed into a tournament without paying and a coaches wristband to be able to sit on the bench. Team scorekeepers are not allowed to sit at the scorer’s table during games.  

5.2 Teams participating in a national tournament may add players but may not add players from teams that are playing in the National Championships without a release. 

5.3 A team roster is frozen at the start of the first game in thetournament your participating in.

5.4 A roster becomes officially approved after the state office staff has approved all players on the roster using the National ID clearance process.  

5.5 A player may play for multiple organizations if the following conditions are met: 

a) The 2 teams are in different grades 
b) The 2 organizations do not offer a team in the other teams grade 
c) The multiple team form is completed and approved by the State Office 
d) Players may only play for one team during a tournament.

5.6 A player can be on the roster of multiple divisions within the same organization if he/she meets the age requirement for each division. 

5.7 A player becomes locked to a team when he/she is approved by the State Director in which his/her team plays in a US Amateur Basketball event after February 1.  

5.8 player can change rosters after February 1 only if released by the coach and the organization / club president. 
5.9 A player is not officially released to a new team until he/she is removed from the online roster of his/her old team. 
5.10 A player who has filed a player release form with their coach and feels they are unfairly being denied their release may file an appeal in writing with the state office. The appeals committee will determine if the player should be released. 
5.11 A player may be on a roster with the same organization in more than one grade division and may play in more than one grade division of a tournament but may play on only one team in any single grade division in a tournament. 
5.12 A Player may play for a School team and a division I, II or III team
5.13 The official roster for the state tournament is set and frozen as of the team’s first game. 
5.14 Only boys may participate on boys’ teams and only girls may participate on girls’ teams. 
5.15 Players must be listed on the roster by their name as it appears on their Birth Certificate.  For example, James not Jimmy.  

 

Central Check-In  

6.1 All tournaments will have a central check-in. 

6.2 All teams head coach or team representatives MUST appear at check in during at least 30 minutes before your first scheduled game of the tournamentThis is mandatory.  

6.3 At tournaments with less than 30 total teams, the Tournament Director is responsible for handling all check in duties.  

6.4 The head coach or team administrator must verify at central check-in that all players have approved by the State Director throughNational ID with the following information: 

    1. Official US Amateur Basketball Team Roster must be approved through National ID before the start of the tournament.

    2. Approved means that the player (parent) has provided National ID with the following information:

        a. Proof of age: the acceptable proof of age is a clean copy of a birth certificate, adoption papers, or        immigration papers.   

    b. Proof of grade:  acceptable proof of grade is a clean copy of a report card from the current school    year, signed documentation from the host school district for a home school student (Form EL7S) or an original letter from the school’s administration with a contact phone number included.   

c. A current picture. 

 

 

Player Clearance to Play  

7.1 All players must submit the above credentials online with National ID and get cleared by the Wednesday prior to the event. At check-in the Head Coach at the first tournament of the year will verify that all his players have been cleared to play.  

7.2 Coaches are responsible for the team meeting all eligibility requirements. If a player is found to be ineligible prior to the start of a sanctioned competition, the player will be expelled, and the team will continue. After competition starts, if a player is found to be ineligible, he/she will be expelled, and the team will forfeit all games in which the player’s name appeared in the official scorebook. Coaches who falsify documents will be suspended for one calendar year. A second violation will result in a lifetime suspension from US Amateur Basketball.  

 

Officials  

8.1 All officials must be certified and registered with their respective state official’s association.    

8.2 Officials can work a maximum of six games a day and no more than three consecutive games on Saturday, Sunday or Monday during a tournament.  

8.3 Officials will conduct a pregame meeting between the coaches and the captains. The meeting will focus 

on sportsmanship and fan expectations. Each game site will be provided with a card detailing the items for discussion. 

 

Scorekeepers/Clock Operators:

9.1 The tournament will provide scorekeepers and clock operators for all games. 

9.2 Scorekeepers and clock operators must be at least 15 years old or in 9th grade. 

9.3 Scorekeepers and clock operators are not permitted to use electronic devices (i.e. cell phones) while at the scorer’s table.  

 

Uniforms  

10.1 Player jerseys must have numbers on both front and back. Numbers may be from 00-99. Minimum 

size of numbers shall be 2” on front and 4” on back.  

10.2 Teams must have dark and light jerseys.  

10.3 Home team wears light and visitors wear dark jerseys. 

 

Protests

11.1 All roster protests must be filed in writing accompanied by a $100 protest fee (refundable if the protest is upheld) with the Tournament Director within one (1) hour of the conclusion of the protested game. If the protest is valid, the protested team forfeits all previous games. Upon protest, teams must provide proof of eligibility immediately.  

11.2 All non-roster protests must be filed in writing within one (1) hour of the conclusion of the contest and must be accompanied by a $100 protest fee (refundable if the protest is upheld). Official’s calls are not grounds for a protest.   

11.3 The tournament director will contact the US Amateur Basketballstate office representative or steering committee member assigned to the tournament to handle protests and will decide protests in consultation with that staff or steering committee member. 

 

Bench Personnel    

12.1 A team may have no more than four bench personnel including managers or scorekeepers. All must be members of ACA.  

12.2 At least one person on the bench must be 18 years of age. If a coach is unable to coach for any reason and there are no ACA members above the age of 18 on the bench, tournament officials may disqualify the team. 

12.3 All ACA members MUST wear the wrist band issued to them that tournament, and have their phone with them if needed to show the ACA virtual card upon request.

12.4 All coaches are encouraged to watch a concussion video and inform all parents about the risks of concussions.  We encourage all coaches to complete the online training tool provided by the CDC. US Amateur Basketball also provides great tools through the Positive Coaches Alliance.  

12.5 Teams are responsible for their own first aid kit. It is recommended that all teams carry a first aid kit at all times.   

 

Bench Personnel Dress Code

13.1 Preferred attire is a collared or dress shirt and dress shorts.        

Concussions

14.1 Upon becoming aware that a participant of a team has received a suspected concussion (or has been struck in the head area with any significant force), the Coach will not allow that person to participate in any US Amateur Basketball sanctioned event and if occurring during a US Amateur Basketball sanctioned event, shall have that person removed from play of any US Amateur Basketball sanctioned event.  

14.2 Upon becoming aware that a participant has received a suspected concussion (or has been struck in the head area with any significant force), a referee or tournament director will have that person removed from the court of any US Amateur Basketball sanctioned event.   

14.3 Without a written medical clearance from a licensed medical doctor to return to play, such persons will not be allowed to play in a US Amateur Basketball sanctioned event.  The medical written consent must be presented to the State Director and retained permanently by the US Amateur Basketball State Director.  Any coach, who allows a participant back in a US Amateur Basketballsanctioned event without first obtaining the required written consent, may be suspended by the State Director for up to one year and upon request of the State Director, may be suspended for a longer duration by the US Amateur Basketball disbarment committee. 

14.4 All Doctor releases must be submitted to the US Amateur Basketball State Office by noon on Friday prior to an event.  Doctor releases may be submitted via fax (813-991-7800), email (coachripley1208@gmail.com) or mail (1452 Carradale Ln Mt Pleasant, SC 29466).  

Tiebreakers  

15.1 Two Teams Tied:  Head-to-head result 

15.2 Three or more teams: A point differential system will be used.   

• Only the games of the teams involved in the tie will be used towards the point differential calculation.   
• The maximum point differential is 15 points per game. 
• If two teams are still tied after the point differential, then revert back to head-to-head 
• If three teams are still tied after the point differential, then the team with the fewest points allowed in all pool play games wins the tiebreaker.     

 

Mercy Rule

16.1 Once a team is leading by 30 points anytime in a game, the clock will continue to run. The only time the clock will stop is for injuries or timeouts. If the lead falls below 20 points, the clock will again be stopped for all whistle stoppages. 

 

Sportsmanship and Unsportsmanlike Conduct Procedures  

17.1 Athletes, coaches, administrators, spectators, and all other persons connected directly or indirectly with a US Amateur Basketball member team, as well as contest officials, shall adhere to the principles of good sportsmanship and the ethics of competition before, during and after all contests in which they participate and/or attend. Each participating US Amateur Basketball team and its head coach shall be held strictly accountable for unsportsmanlike conduct on the part of its competitors, coaches and spectators. 17.2 An athlete, coach, administrator or spectator who commits an act of malicious and hateful nature toward a contest official, opponent or any other person attending a US Amateur Basketball contest shall be guilty of unsportsmanlike conduct.    

17.3 If contestants or people from any US Amateur Basketball team are found guilty of carelessness or maliciously breaking, damaging or destroying property or equipment belonging to a host tournament site or host organization, that US Amateur Basketball team will be held responsible for costs incurred in replacing or repairing such property or equipment.  

17.4 If contestants participate in a bench and/or a bleacher-clearing fight, both teams will be suspended for at least the remainder of thattournament.   Further consequences will be decided by the next week by the State and National office.

17.5 The North and South US Amateur Basketball offices will keep records of problem teams. After the first negative report, the team will be notified by letter by the state office about its actions. After two negative reports, the team will be notified by letter by the state office that it has been placed on probation. After a third negative report, the team will be notified by letter by the state office that it has been suspended from further competition, at a minimum, for the remainder of the current season. 

 

Disqualification (ejection)  

18.1 Level I: Athlete and/or Coach at a minimum suspended from that game and the next game. If it was the last game of the weekend for that team, then the consequences will be carried over to the next tournament the Athlete and/or Coach participate in. Incident will be reported to the state office to determine if additional consequences are needed. 

18.2 Level II: Athlete and/or Coach at a minimum suspended for the remainder of the tournament. Incident will be reported to the state office to determine if additional consequences are needed. 

18.3 Level III: Athlete and/or Coach at a minimum suspended for the remainder of the season. Incident will be reported to the state office to determine if additional consequences are needed. 

18.4 Level IV: Athlete and/or Coach suspended for life. 

 

Restrictions on Disqualified Coach  

19.1 (a) Must immediately leave the competition to a place where he/she is not visible to the athletes, officials, spectators or other coaches and where he/she cannot see the competition.  

       (b) Must not have any further contact with or give instruction to athletes or other members of his/her staff for the remainder of the contest, including halftime intermission, breaks between  quarters and post-contest activities.  

(c) Shall not attend any subsequent contest from which he/she has been suspended in any capacity, shall not be present at the site, and shall not accompany his/her team to the site of the contest.             

 

Crowd Control              

20.1 The site director is responsible for the control of spectators during a contest. The officials assigned to work a contest are responsible for the conduct of the contest itself. In the event, however, a spectator or group of spectators interferes with the conduct of the contest or causes an official to become distracted through continual, unrelenting verbal abuse, the official should immediately stop the action and report the spectator or group of spectators to the site director and ask that they be restrained or removed from the facility. The head coach will be held responsible for actions of spectators attached to his/her team and will be responsible to assist the site director in any action requested. 

20.2 If a parent is ejected from a gym the player of that parent is ejected as well. The length of a parent’s ejection, if longer than the initial game ejection, will also equal the length of the player’s ejection. 

 

Tournament Entry

20.1 Tournament directors have the right to refuse entry to a US Amateur Basketball event for any team with approval of the US Amateur Basketball state office. 

21.1 Once the tournament entry deadline has passed, refunds of tournament entry fees will be at the sole discretion of the tournament director. No entry fees will be refunded after the tournament schedule is posted.