RAPID CITY - While the addition of the 35-second shot clock has done little to impact area teams through the early part of the high school basketball season, coaches are strongly in favor of its use.

"It has been extremely smooth through our first four games and we have not had any shot clock violations. which has a lot to do with the style that we play," first-year Spearfish head boys coach Erik Skoglund said.

The faster pace and the necessity to play more players are two of the bigger reasons of support mentioned for the addition of the 35-second shot clock.

"Getting more playing time for those one or two other kids is important," Rapid City Stevens head boys coach T.J. Hay said. "They are usually younger players and being able to develop them will only help you the next season."

Both Class AA boys and girls teams began using the shot clock during games after the South Dakota High School Activities Association's board of directors adopted the change on the endorsement of athletic directors at the 17 AA schools.

Skoglund said being at a Class AA school means he has the number of players that makes sense to have the shot clock.

"There tends to be more fouls which means you have to play more kids that may not usually be in your rotation," he said. "It is only going to make you better for the tournament.

Rapid City Central head boys basketball coach Mike Purcell has already seen one major change during the early portion of the season.

"Teams have been pressing a lot more," he said. "They are pressing hard so it takes you seven to nine seconds to get the ball over half court and some more time to set the offense, so there is already 15 seconds off the shot clock before you are really ready to go. It puts the pressure on you and they are trying to force you into mistakes."

Purcell likes aggressiveness because it forces teams to be able to operate well in the half court setting.

Rapid City Central head girls coach Kraig Bloome said the impact on the girls game has not been overwhelming.

"We haven't had any trouble," he said. "I think where you see it most is at the end of a quarter or at the end of a game situation. Coaches in the last minute of a quarter or the game would hold the ball with the lead and they can't do that anymore."

Bloome said his rotation has been largely unaffected by the shot clock, but did say one small change was the bench staying more involved in the game counting down the final seconds of the shot clock to help their teammates stay aware on the court.

Class AA is the only level of high school basketball using the shot clock this season as many of the smaller schools have expressed concern for adopting it because of the fewer number of players on their roster.

Several area AA coaches also expressed their desire to play 18-minute halves instead of the four eight-minute quarters.

"I know that over Halloween weekend the coaches association met in Sioux Falls and I want to say that two-thirds of the coaches were in favor of the 18-minute halves," Skoglund said. "It was nothing official just some discussion, but it shows the interest is there."

While the impact of the shot clock may not have many coaches seeing a lot of differences early on, Hay believes that will change at the end of the season.

"Two out of the last three years we have been involved in some very low scoring postseason games because the other team just sat on the ball with a lead," he said. "This will force them to speed up which is why I am glad to see it."

South Dakota is one of eight states where a shot clock is used at the high school level, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.