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3-point shot: Rules changes coming

1. The NCAA men's basketball rules committee meets next month and there will likely be be a significant development with replay. Chair John Dunne of St. Peter's fully expects the committee to adopt a rule that would allow officials to go to the monitor for all key decisions in the final minute of a game or half like scoring, out-of-bounds situations and fouls. Dunne wants to extend it to the final two minutes, but one influential administrator added that the ratio makes sense, with the NBA review period at two minutes for a 48-minute game and the NCAA at one minute for a 40-minute game. Meanwhile, the rules committee is also expected to adjust the combative elbow rule. The administrator said the officials will look at giving offensive players more space to create room, especially if the defender is up on them or comes from the blind side.

2. New Mexico's new coach, Craig Neal, said it was a family decision for Tony Snell to declare for the NBA draft. Snell's move is another classic example of how hiring a top assistant doesn't guarantee that returning players will come back just because the players' choice got the head job. This doesn't mean, however, that Neal wasn't the right choice; he was. He gives New Mexico its best chance at continuity. Neal said the Lobos will have three options to replace Snell's productive scoring in Kansas transfer Merv Lindsay, Cleveland Thomas and newcomer Devon Williams.

3. Maryland coach Mark Turgeon said he was set to meet with Alex Len on Monday about whether or not the 7-foot-1 sophomore will stay in school or declare for the NBA draft. Turgeon said a decision is likely sometime next week, in advance of the NCAA's arbitrary April 16 deadline. But Len can take his time. He doesn't need to decide until April 28, the real early-entry deadline -- when an actual list comes out from the NBA. Len will be a coveted choice due to his skill set and tantalizing potential if he decides to declare.