UR Basketball Rules

Urban Rec basketball Rules

*NOTE- these are general rules for our basketball leagues.  For league-specific rules, please click on the applicable link in that league’s information*

  • Scheduling: Teams will play 1 game each week. Some teams MAY be scheduled into double headers. The schedule will be as balanced as possible with regards to early and late games.
  • Reseeding: Teams may be reseeded as a result of competitive balance requirements throughout the season as warranted at Urban Rec’s sole discretion.
  • Rules: Please review the rules before the season with your team to avoid any confusion.  The rules are located below as well as on your Member Dashboard and can be accessed by clicking on Members in the upper-right corner above and then on Dashboard.
  • Uniforms: Bring light- and dark-coloured shirts- default is home team wears light and away wears dark. If there is a colour conflict, teams will play Rock, Paper, Scissors, with the losing team having to switch their jerseys.
  • Subbing: Can be done on the fly when the team is on offense, within reason.
  • Fouls: Please call your own fouls. Games are self-refereed.  Participants are responsible for calling their own fouls- please err on the side of good sportsmanship.

Urban Rec Coed Basketball Rules

Teams

  1. Have fun and play with good sportsmanship!  We expect all of our Urban Rec participants to have a “Fun First” attitude about this unique sporting opportunity.  There is an emphasis on the players knowing the rules and managing their own actions on the court.  Sportsmanship, fun and being social are number one at Urban Rec and we hope to see that exhibited by all of our participants!
  2. To be eligible to play in the league all participants must have signed an online waiver with Urban Rec. Players that do not sign an online waiver will not be issued membership keytags and are not permitted to participate. Team captains that do not fill out the online team roster will have their team removed from the schedule until they do so and all players have signed the waiver. Team captains are responsible for ensuring that all participants for their team are eligible to participate.
  3. Playoffs Eligibility – all players must be on a team’s roster and have played a minimum of 2 games over the regular season to be eligible to play in the playoffs. A team using an ineligible player will automatically forfeit the playoff game if the game has begun and that player has played in the game at that point. If a player shows up that is not on the team roster, they will not be allowed to play regardless if they played or subbed during the regular season. All players must be on the roster and indicate they have read the online waiver even if they are subs.
  4. The on-site staff may do a random ID check for players at any time at their discretion to ensure they are eligible to participate.  If a team is found to be using an ineligible player, then that player’s team will forfeit the game if it has already begun.  If the ID check is done prior to the game starting then that player is simply not permitted to participate until they have indicated they have read the online waiver (they can do this via their smartphone). 
  5. Prior to your game, please double-check the online league schedule for your game times.  If your team is late and not ready to go when the whistle blows to start the match, then you will lose playing time.  A match will consist of two 25-minute halves. 
  6. Teams have a 10-minute grace period from their scheduled start time as tracked by the Event Coordinator to field the minimum starting lineup (for basketball, a complete starting lineup should consist of five players including at least 2 women and 1 man. A team may play with an incomplete starting lineup of as few as four players provided they have at least 1 woman and 1 man on the floor.
    If a team does not have enough players to field the minimum starting lineup by the end of this 10-minute grace period, then that team defaults the game and is subject to the associated default fee used to reimburse their opponent.  In this situation, the teams are encouraged to mix up players and play for fun during their time slot.  Any team defaulting more than 2 games in a season may be asked to leave the league, with no refund.
  7. Teams may avoid defaulting in regular season games by utilizing players from other teams (other than your opponents) that play in the league without penalty.  However, in the playoffs, this can only be done to avoid being subject to the default policy- the game will be considered an automatic loss (but not a default) if a team utilizes players not on their roster to field a lineup.
  8. All players should bring a dark shirt and a light shirt to all games. By default, the visiting team will be required to change their shirts if both teams show up wearing a similar colour.
  9. Tiebreaker - If two or more teams are tied in the standings at season’s end, the tiebreaker will be as follows:
    1st tiebreaker – higher in-division win
    2nd tiebreaker – higher UR fun point average
    3rd tiebreaker – head to head winner
    4th tiebreaker- points for/against in head to head games
    5th tiebreaker – coin flip

General Rules

  1. Before play, please check the area for any debris, puddles or dangerous obstacles and report these findings to your on-site staff.
  2. Any controversial play where teams are unable to determine the appropriate call due to not seeing the play, complexity of the situation, etc. can defer to the on-site staff. Should the on-site staff be unable to make a fair judgement call, the play will simply be reset. Once this is determined, the game will proceed without further discussion.
  3. ​UNSPORTSMANLIKE PLAY WILL NOT BE TOLERATED – Urban Rec leagues are recreational by design and sportsmanship is paramount. This is further articulated in the Urban Rec code of conduct that was signed by all players upon registering to play in any Urban Rec league.
  4. If the on-site staff witnesses any acts of flagrant contact, elbowing, cheap shots, or any type of aggressive play or unsportsmanlike act, the game can be stopped and the player can be removed from the game.
  5. Trash talking is illegal. (Trash talk is language communicated that may be offensive to the coordinator, opposing players, teams, or spectators). If trash talking occurs, the on-site staff will issue one warning at their discretion. If it continues, the player or players will be ejected from the game.
  6. Only the players invovled in a play should make a call: absolutely NO CALLS PERMITTED from players not on the court.
  7. All other standard basketball regulations apply unless otherwise mentioned in the below rules.

On-site Staff

  1. The staff on-site is NOT the referee. All games are self-officiated. Rather, the on-site staff is responsible for timing the games, ensuring you have the necessary equipment to play, providing basic first aid and is a resource if you have any questions or concerns. They are however tasked with enabling a positive and safe atmosphere for the participants. At their discretion they may eject players for actions that are contrary to league policy, game rules or violate the code of conduct.
  2. In situations where the teams are unable to determine the appropriate call due to not seeing the play, complexity of the situation, etc. they can defer to the on-site staff and if he or she also cannot determine a timely resolution, it will result in a reset in play.

Timing

  1. Games will consist of two 25-minute halves in length, run time. There are no timeouts. After the first half, the on-site staff will inform teams they are on a half-time break which lasts at the discretion of the coordinator.
  2. – Playoffs only – Shot clock & Stop time – If a playoff match enters the last two minutes of game with the score being within 10 points or less, shot clock & stop time stipulations will be put into effect and monitored by the staff on site. Time will be stopped whenever the ball is out of bounds, on a foul, injury, etc. The shot clock will be set at 24 seconds, which will only reset for a team should they recover an offensive rebound (the ball must hit the rim to be considered an offensive rebound).
  3. – Playoffs only – In the event of a tie at the end of regulation: If there is time remaining, and at the discretion of the Event Coordinator, teams should play a 2-minute OT. A 20 second shot clock (instead of a 24 secodn shot clock) and stop time rules will be in effect.
    1. If there is not enough time remaining, at the discretion of staff, teams may play a 2min or 1min run time OT period (a 20 second shot clock will still be in effect).
    2. If a game remains tied after any OT period, the same rules will apply for further OT periods (staff discretion regarding how much time each period will be, 20 second shot clock applies).

Offense

  1. Games start with a jump ball, with either the on-site staff or a participant, tossing the ball at center court. The team that does not win the jump ball will start with possession at the second half.
  2. Any time the offensive teams receives possession after a stoppage (ball out of bounds, foul call etc) the ball will be ‘checked in’ by the offense at the top of the key. Following the ‘check in’ the player MUST pass the ball (they may not dribble or shoot the ball).
  3. Players can be subbed in on the fly. Subs may only be made on offense and only before the ball has crossed half court. Players subbing for each other must be close enough to theoretically shake hands or else the sub is invalid.
  4. The over-and-back rule is in effect.  If a team plays the ball over the midcourt line and then plays the ball back across the line into their own half, the other team shall take possession on the sideline at centre court.
  5.  There is no “three in the key” penalty.

Defense

  1. Each team shall be permitted five (5) team fouls per half.  Upon a team’s sixth (and subsequent) foul, the non-offending team shall be awarded one (1) point as well as possession of the ball following the foul. If a team is making questionable foul calls, the on-site staff reserves the right to not count a call as an official team foul. The team who called the foul will still receive the ball at the top of the key, however the foul will not count towards the 5 team fouls, or if a team is in the bonus, a point will not be added.
  2. Urban Rec has extended the restricted area to the second hash mark from the foul line inside the key. Defenseive players may not try and draw a charge inside this restricted area.
  3. Full court man-to-man pressure is permitted, however—should a team lead the game by 15 points or more, the pressure must be removed & no attempts to defend the ball handler are permitted (impeding progress, trying to steal the ball, setting traps, and so on) before half court. Any infraction of this rule witnessed by the staff will result in the offending team being assessed a foul, which counts towards a team’s allotted number of fouls per half.
  4. In the event of a jumpball (two opponents are both holding possession of the ball for 3 seconds), the ball is always awarded to the team on the defensive side of the court.
  5. All games are self-refereed.  Any infractions will be discussed amongst the two players involved only. In the event of a foul during a scoring attempt, the ball is “checked up” from the top of the key by the team on offense.
  6. Absolutely NO ZONE DEFENSE is allowed.