I found this definition to be rather what I had intended and decided to now find how the novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn used the river in the context as a whole but more importantly as symbolism in the middles sections of Chapters 16-31.
The maximum time limit of the shot clock varies by level of play and league: The National Basketball Association has had a 24-second limit since first introducing the clock in the 1950s; and college basketball for both men and women has a 30-second limit.
When the ball is inbound, the clock starts once a player touches the ball. In the NBA the clock stops after a made shot during the last two minutes of the game and overtime. For college it stops during the last minute of the game and overtime. Overtime If the game is tied after regulation time, there will be overtime. Overtime is 5 minutes long in most leagues. Additional overtimes will be added until one team ends up on top. The Shot Clock In order to speed up the game and to prevent teams from stalling, a shot clock was added. This is how long you have to shoot the ball. If the ball changes possession or hits the rim of the basket, the shot clock starts over. The length of the shot clock is different for different basketball leagues: NCAA College Men - 35 seconds