Piaa Basketball Rules

The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) oversees all high school basketball games in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvaina. Most of the rules used by the PIAA are the same as the universal rules of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), but there are a few differences that are unique to Pennsylvania basketball.

Coaching Box

Coaches may sit on the bench and they may also get up to lead their team or express themselves to the officials. However, they must stay in a 14-foot box located directly in front of the coaching bench. If coaches leave this box for the purpose of continuing a discussion or argument with an official, they will be assessed a technical foul. Coaches or players who accumulate two technical fouls in one game are not only ejected from that game, but may also be suspended for future games.

40-point Rule

In all levels of basketball administered by PIAA officials, a running clock shall be used in the second half of games when the differential in score grows to 40 points or more. The clock shall continue to operate in standard fashion if a 40-point advantage is reached in the first half. The clock stops in a blowout (40-point or more differential) when an official or one of the team calls a timeout for any reason.

Entering the Game

No player is allowed to come into the game from the bench without being motioned into the game by the official. Prior to that, the player must report to the scorers' table and tell the scorer who they are coming to the game for and what number they are wearing. Once the scorer tells the official that the player has reported correctly, the official can wave the player into the game at the next stoppage in play. Players who do not report correctly are subject to a technical foul call.