The NCAA is inching toward a seismic shift in men’s college basketball—not just with coaches’ challenges and tweaks to continuation fouls, but with real momentum behind moving from two 20-minute halves to four quarters. This isn’t a whimsical idea; it’s rooted in a broader push to modernize the game’s flow, officiating consistency, and media packaging.
Starting with the near-term changes: in 2025–26, coaches will get one challenge per timeout to review out-of-bounds calls, restricted-area defense, and goaltending/basket interference. Win the challenge, earn another; lose it, and you’re done. Officials still retain automatic review powers in late-game situations.
Plus, the dreaded “no-carry continuation” rule now gives fouled drivers a chance to finish their move—pivot, step, and shoot—before being whistled for traveling. Officials will also crack down harder on delay tactics and reduce monitor interruptions, while adjusting the flagrant foul process to include Flagrant 1 for groin hits.
The real blueprint, though, is bigger. The rules committee has launched a joint working group with Division I conferences to explore switching to quarters—signaling “positive momentum” toward aligning the men’s game with women’s and pro basketball formats. This shift isn’t trivial. It impacts everything from media timeouts and commercial inventory to late-game strategies and statistical benchmarks. That said, the NCAA is moving carefully: collect feedback, model logistics, and potentially implement changes by next cycle.
Why this matters: moving to quarters offers cleaner rhythm, clearer foul resets, and better broadcast alignment. Quarters could reduce chaotic end-of-half play, limit coaching timeout manipulation, and offer more consistent commercial spaces. For coaches, it means game management becomes more segmented—timeouts and challenges each quarter take on new strategies. For players, it could reshape fatigue patterns and substitution timing.
It’s easy to dismiss these engineering maneuvers as bureaucratic inertia. But NCAA officials and coaches alike see an opportunity to modernize America’s most popular college sport—to cut downtime, clarify rules, and align men’s hoops with the professional standard. Those working groups will decide whether this isn’t just talk, but actual change.
College basketball is at a tipping point: a slew of incremental tweaks heading into 2025–26, with strategic momentum pushing toward quarters. If these changes land, it’ll be less a rules update and more a cultural pivot — shifting how the game is played, coached, watched, and sold.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
