CYO Basketball Rules

The Administration of the Catholic Youth Organization
encourages play of all children in every game.

All CYO Leagues, for boys and girls, follow the official High School Basketball (Boys) Rules of the National Federation of State High School Athletic Association

These rules below are general Archdiocesan rules and take precedent for Archdiocesan Tournaments and Championships. 

County Play Rules take precedent during county play seasons.

1. The 3 point play will be governed by county rules except at the Archdiocesan championships where it will be implemented in the 6th, 7th 8th Grade and High School divisions. 

2. Time periods: All 3rd through 8th Grade Girls and Boys Divisions - 6 minutes. High School - 7 minutes.   A 3 minute overtime to break a tied score will be used by all age groups.

3. In all Girls Divisions and 3rd, 4th and 5th Grade Boys Divisions, the official 28.5" ball will be used.

4. The foul line for 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Grade Girls and the 3rd, 4th and 5th Grade Boys Divisions should be 12 feet from the backboard.  However, the full key will be utilized to determine the three-second violation. 

4.1) In 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th Grade Girls and 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Grade Boys Divisions, the bottom box of the key will be filled when shooting free throws.

4.2) In 7th, 8th, and High School Girls and 6th, 7th, 8th and High School Boys Divisions, the first marked lane space (the lane space adjacent to the end line) shall not be occupied.

4.3)  In ALL Divisions, Players may step in on the release of the foul shot.  

5. Updated 9/01/2023: The CYO has adopted the rule change by NFHS eliminating the "one and one": Bonus situation. The bonus situation begins with the 5th team foul, There are always two free throws. The team fouls reset to zero after every quarter. The team fouls do not reset after the 4th quarter into an overtime quarter. All substitutions should be made after the first foul shot. 

6. In 3rd Grade Girls and 3rd Grade Boys Divisions, the full court press will take effect only in the last one minute of the game. The defense must remain behind the offensive half court line until the last minute of the game.

7. When a team is 15 points ahead in any game, it will be illegal to use a front court press. Failure to comply with this rule, after a warning, may lead to a technical foul.

8. A player may compete on only one CYO team and only in one division.

9. When a parish or school has more than one team in CYO leagues, a player may move from one team to another in compliance with roster addition dates if eligible, only once in the course of a season, with the approval of the County Director. A player cannot jump back and forth.

10. Four time outs are allowed during the game. There will be no penalty for illegal numbers on uniforms, or for contrasting colors on shirts worn under uniforms. Contrasting shirts must be uniform throughout the team.

11. Dunking is NOT permitted in any CYO division, not during warm-ups nor during games.

12. Team players and up to two coaches only may sit on the bench.

13. No shot clocks will be utilized.

14. All uniform shirts must have parish/school name printed on the front.

15. Players shall remove ALL jewelry and hair accessories prior to start of game. Players are NOT permitted to wear tape over any jewelry (including earrings.) Players either REMOVE ALL JEWELRY and HAIR ACCESSORIES or THEY DO NOT PARTICIPATE in the game.

16. Players are not permitted to wear sneakers with lights, springs or wheels.

17. A player or coach who is ejected from a game will be suspended one game for the first offense and will face possible expulsion from the league on the second offense.

18. Players involved in a fight will be suspended depending on the severity of the incident and may face expulsion.  Second offense will result in immediate expulsion.  A coach involved in a fight will face immediate expulsion upon consultation with the Pastor, County Director and the Advisory Board.

19. It is the home team’s responsibility to keep the time clock and scorebook, whether at their gym or at the CYO Center.  Parishes, schools, etc. are responsible to train adults to run the clock.

Note: Children who are attending games must be supervised by their parent or guardian.  It is not the responsibility of coordinators, coaches or the CYO staff to supervise children attending games as spectators.  Lack of supervision can lead to possible injury to the child/children.

Note: These are the General CYO NY Basketball Rules. Additional or overriding rules may apply at the County level. Please also refer to the rules of your County League.