Today's "60 Second" basketball tip will help give coaches a better insight on how officials work together to correctly award the ball to the rightful team when the calling referee is screened on an out of bounds play.

Now some coaches may feel the mental coin that officials toss in their head to make their rulings is permanently weighted in favor of the other team, but if you watch closely you will observe the 2 or 3-person crew work quickly and confidently to get the play right. 

COACH 60 caught up with the highly-respected mens head basketball coach of St. Joseph's University, Phil Martelli, and asked for his help in launching our "60 Second" concept of providing small but steady doses of educational content, to those who have accepted the responsibility of teaching the game of basketball to today's players.

Fittingly, the premiere issue of "60 Seconds on Coaching" for basketball, deals with sharpening the personal skills needed to have long-term team success. Coach Martelli poses a challenging question, and offers valuable answer for coaches of all age groups and levels, to consider.

One of the most challenging concepts for coaches to understand is that of of a closely guarded situation. 

Years ago the situation was even more complicated with a mid-court / fore-court area ... but since the 28 foot lines were ostensibly removed this created one big front court making it easier for officials to follow guarded opponents during play.

Here are some keys to remember when a referee SHOULD INITIATE a closely guarded situation...

• The ball must be in the front court.
• There must be player-control.
• The opponent (defender) must be within six (6) feet.
• The offensive player can either be holding or dribbling the ball.
• Six feet is measured from the forward foot of the defender to the forward foot of the offensive player.