The shot clock is making it’s way to Iowa high school basketball next year.
The IHSAA and IGHSAU both announced on Tuesday morning that they will implement a 35-second shot clock for varsity basketball starting in the 2022-23 season.
Use of the shot clock in sub-varsity competition will be allowed but not required. The IHSAA and IGHSAU will release further information about the change closer to the 2022-23 season.
The addition of a shot clock should make the end of games and quarters more strategic and interesting with the elimination of running out the final minute or two of the clock at the end of quarters and forcing teams to play the foul game for much of the final few minutes of a close game. One could argue it could also increase scoring by forcing teams to get into their offensive sets quicker.
But it will also be a new challenge as schools have to implement shot clocks into their gyms and add another qualified person to run the shot clock along with the regular clock and scoreboard. Coaches and players will also need to adjust to the change with the first season likely to see several shot clock violations and bad shots at the end of the shot clock to avoid a turnover.
The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) approved the use of a 35-second shot clock in a meeting in April and has encouraged it to be a standardization among all states. Iowa will become the ninth state to have a shot clock, joining California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Washington.
Other changes announced on Tuesday included the addition of individual tournaments at the state qualifying and state meets. Team events will feature baker games before starting a bracketed format at the state meet. Individual tournaments will be three games with a bracket for the top eight individuals at the state meet.
Bowling classifications also changed to add the largest 32 teams to 3A, next 32 to 2A and the remaining in 1A.
Track and field also moved up their first practice date for 2022 up one week from Monday, Feb. 28 to Monday, Feb. 21 with the same first competition date of Monday, March 7.
