Within six feet is closely guarded, no specific stance is required by definition, because none is stated. It makes no difference if a defender takes a step back; as long as they stay within six feet, the count continues (this goes back to the no particular stance required). This includes an offensive player making a move to the basket in which he/she never gets head and shoulders past the defender. By rule, the count continues, all the way to the hoop. There is no provision to stop the count if the offensive player is driving to the hoop. If the offense never gets head and shoulders past the defender, a closely guarded violation should be called.

If the defense backs off to a position that is more than six feet, the count stops (we give our more than six feet arms out signal). Any time that the offense gets head and shoulders past a defender, the count stops (signal again). This includes a player who has picked up the dribble and pivots around the defense to get head and shoulders past the defense (most commonly this means closer to their basket).

In High School for boys closely guarded count applies only in the front court whereas for girls it applies all over the court. The Closely Guarded count is 5 seconds.