Rules of the Game Most basketball games are spilt up in four quarters. Each quarter is about eight to ten minutes long. Some games only have 20 min. halves. At the end of the game if the score is tied you go into to overtime. Overtime is a five minute period in which teams play and try to score. At the end, the team that has the most points wins! Each team has its own specific basket. To earn two points you must make a basket inside the three point line. To earn three points you must shoot outside the three point line. To shoot the ball you must be on offense. Offense is the team that has the ball. When you are not on offense you are on defense. What defense is, is you are trying to keep the offense from scoring. To get back on offense you must rebound the ball. Then so you won't get hurt the referee calls fouls. A foul is when you touch another player and the referee decides it is illegal. A player can get five fouls and on their fifth one they are ejected. When a person fouls you you either get to shoot a free-throw or you get the right to the ball. Also you can not travel or double dribble. Traveling is where you have caught the ball and started walking or running. Rolling on the floor and sliding are also forms of traveling. Double dribbling is where you stop dribbling and catch the ball and start dribbling again. If you are on offense and the ball has passed the half court-line the ball may not go passed that line again or it is called backcourt. Backcourt is illegal and results in the other team gets possession of the ball. The team with the most points wins! History | Warming Up
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