Women's College Basketball Is Packed With Fun And Hoopla

A Coaches note first. Founded in 1981, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association promotes women's basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport of women's basketball and to foster and promote the development of the game of basketball as an amateur sport for women and girls.

Women's college basketball dates back to a game played at Smith College for girls in 1893 between freshmen against the sophomores. However, the first official women's basketball match was played between Stanford and Berkley in April 1896. This match was played behind locked doors and men were not allowed to watch women prancing on the basketball court.

The first rules governing women's basketball were written in 1901. However, these rules continued to be modified as the game evolved. The early years also saw some freak playing rules. For instance, the basket was sewn, and it was left to the umpire to retrieve the ball every time a basket was scored. Not only this, some games were played on grass courts!

It was only in 1975 that the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women conducted the first national basketball tournament for women, and in 1975, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association selected their first All-America Team. The American Basketball League (ABL) was founded in 1996 and the WNBA in 1997. These associations came up to stop American basketball players from moving to foreign leagues.

The college basketball, however, continues to be supervised by NCAAA, which has set up three divisions to filter the best players. Division I is the most prominent and popular league. Those colleges that sponsor at least 7 sports for women players play it. They are required to play all but two of their games against other women basketball teams in Division 1.

Division II includes those colleges that organize at least four sports each for women. These basketball teams are required to play at least half of their games against Division I or Division II teams. Division III includes those colleges that organize at least five sports with two teams.

The winners of 31 conferences automatically qualify for NCAA's annual women's basketball championship. The remaining 34 are chosen by a selection committee to make it a field of 64. These teams are then organized in four pools, with each pool seeded from one to 16.

The tourney starts on the third Thursday of March with the most hectic action-taking place in the first two days, when 32 teams make their exit. The next two days see another 16 teams making a bow. The competition heats up for the Final Four position, and then for the ultimate winner.