Women's Basketball Evolution

pe.berkeley.edu Back in 1892, when women had basketball games, men weren’t allowed to watch them. Their basketball game has evolved an extraordinary amount from 1892 to what it is today, especially the rules of the game. The website Athletic Scholarships and Women’s Hoops Blog explains to us how girls basketball has changed. We know they’re reliable because they’re blogs and websites supplying us with this information.

In 1892, Senda Berenson, began to teach young females the game of basketball. She was a physical education teacher at Smith College in MA. I think this is a weird coincidence that this actually took place right down the road from the place where Naismith invented basketball. There were special rules for these girl players. They could only hold the ball for three seconds and only dribble three times before they had to pass the ball. At Smith College, during the girls basketball games, they would have guards stand outside the gym to prevent men from watching their games. I find it crazy how far the girls games have come. Nowadays, girls teams would want guys to come watch their games to support them when back then they didn’t even want them in the gym.

The rules for the first girls basketball games were very different than what they are today. Back then, if a team had 3 consecutive fouls, the other team would get a point. Now, it doesn’t matter what order the fouls are in, and no matter how many fouls a team has the other team will never get a point from it. Also, back then, there were six players on each team and after each basket was made, there would be a center jump. Today, there isn’t a limit on the number of people per team but it’s usually at least ten. Also, the only time there’s a center jump is at the beginning of the game. The rule that I think is the most different is the girls weren’t allowed to snatch or bat the ball away from another player. Now, part of the game is to try and steal the ball. It’s crazy how much the rules have evolved to today.

Future Research Question: How have men's basketball uniforms changed over time?