IHSA finalizes 35-second clock for boys and girls varsity high school games
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By Matt Troha
(associate executive director of the IHSA)
BLOOMINGTON – The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for its regularly scheduled meeting at the IHSA office in Bloomington on June 15 where like it or not the board finalized expectations for the 35-second shot clock, which will be required for varsity boys and girls basketball contests beginning with the 2026-27 IHSA season.
“It is important that we provide clear cut guidelines to our schools on the expectations for the shot clock as we move toward the 2026-27 season,” said IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson. “We believe our board was forward-thinking in providing significant planning time for schools to prepare for the shot clock. It is imperative that all schools are afforded the same competitive experience and that every student-athlete competes under consistent conditions. By establishing these expectations, schools have had ample opportunity to budget, plan, and install the necessary equipment, ensuring an equitable environment.”
The board voted to accept the recommendation of the IHSA Basketball Advisory Committee by adding State Association Adoption No. 4, which reads “A school may not host a varsity contest if a shot clock is not installed or is not properly mounted on the backboard in the primary gym in accordance with NFHS rules. The host school must secure an alternate facility or allow the opponent to host the contest. If the host school is unable to secure a gym with functioning shot clocks and the opposing school cannot host, the game shall be forfeited by the home team.”
Additionally, State Association Adoption No. 4 addresses events that use multiple-gyms: “When a school hosts a tournament or shootout utilizing multiple gyms or sites, and a traditional backboard-mounted shot clock is not feasible in an auxiliary gym, shot clocks must be mounted on the wall behind the basket, at or above the backboard, and must be clearly visible and unobstructed.”
The shot clock is optional for lower-level games (junior varsity, sophomore, freshman, etc.).
The board allowed for experimental use of the shot clock in 2022-23 and 2023-24, providing teams the option to use it in tournaments and shootouts. In June of 2024, the IHSA Board voted to implement a 35-second shot clock for all varsity games beginning with the 2026-27 season in order to provide schools with time to plan and install the devices. At the same meeting, the board made the shot clock an option for regular-season games in 2024-25 and 2025-26 when mutually agreed upon by the competing teams.
Entering the 2025-26 high school basketball season, 29 states were requiring the use of the shot clock, while three others offered it as an option. Illinois and Oklahoma are both adopting the shot clock for the 2026-27 season, while New Jersey (2027-28) and Pennsylvania (2028-29) have announced plans to add the shot clock in coming seasons.
A statewide survey of high school coaches in Illinois conducted by the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) in 2020 revealed that 75% of the boys head coaches in the state supported the implementation of the shot clock, while 68% percent of the girls coaches who responded were in favor.