Basketball is a team sport. Two teams of five players each try to score by shooting a ball through a
hoop elevated 10 feet above the ground. The game is played on a rectangular floor called the court,
and there is a hoop at each end. The court is divided into two main sections by the mid-court line.
If the offensive team puts the ball into play behind the mid-court line, it has ten seconds to get the
ball over the mid-court line. If it doesn't, then the defense gets the ball. Once the offensive team
gets the ball over the mid-court line, it can no longer have possession of the ball in the area in back
of the line. If it does, the defense is awarded the ball.
The ball is moved down the court toward the basket by passing or dribbling. The team with the ball is
called the offense. The team without the ball is called the defense. They try to steal the ball, contest
shots, steal and deflect passes, and garner rebounds.
When a team makes a basket, they score two points and the ball goes to
the other team. If a basket, or field goal, is made outside of the
three-point arc, then that basket is worth three points. A free throw is
worth one point. Free throws are awarded to a team according to some
formats involving the number of fouls committed in a half and/or the
type of foul committed. Fouling a shooter always results in two or
three free throws being awarded the shooter, depending upon where he was
when he shot. If he was beyond the three-point line, then he gets
three shots. Other types of fouls do not result in free throws being
awarded until a certain number have accumulated during a half. Once
that number is reached, then the player who was fouled is awarded a
'1-and-1' opportunity. If he makes his first free throw, he gets to
attempt a second. If he misses the first shot, the ball is live on the
rebound.
Each game is divided into sections. All levels have two halves. In
college, each half is twenty minutes long. In high school and below,
the halves are divided into eight (and sometimes, six) minute quarters.
In the pros, quarters are twelve minutes long. There is a gap of
several minutes between halves. Gaps between quarters are relatively
short. If the score is tied at the end of regulation, then overtime
periods of various lengths are played until a winner emerges.
Each team is assigned a basket or goal to defend. This means that the other basket is their scoring basket.
At halftime, the teams switch goals. The game begins with one player from either team at center court. A referee
will toss the ball up between the two. The player that gets his hands on the ball will tip it to a teammate. This
is called a tip-off. In addition to stealing the ball from an opposing player, there are other ways for a team to
get the ball.
One such way is if the other team commits a foul or violation.