A Century of Women's Basketball: From Frailty to Final Four

by Joan S. Hult

Book by Hult, Joan S.

Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Century of Women's Basketball is an edited collection of articles about the history of the women’s game in the United States. The volume traces the evolution of the game from being one of specialized rules for women to play at a much shorter court length with rules on holding the ball, dribbles, and shooting that made the game less strenuous. Slowly, at a piece-meal pace, the rules were altered to make it more like the more open court men’s game. The volume notes the rise of the Christian Temperance Union set up sports as a way to lure men away from taverns and to bring morals to women. Women’s participation in sports, such as bicycling, tennis, and basketball meant that women’s fashion loosened up to accommodate movement. The bloomers in the 1890s and later the flappers of the 1920s enabled women’s athletics. The Redheads, a women’s semipro basketball where all the members dyed their hair red, barnstormed and played men’s teams in the 1920s, for instance. The Play Day concept pushed for the right to play by women, while industrial leagues also helped develop company sponsored basketball teams. Over the course of the 20th century, the women’s game became one of the most popular women’s athletics, especially after 1971 saw the rules equalized with men’s basketball, enabled a full court game. Women’s collegiate organizations operated separately from the NCAA and AAU before finally being absorbed by said organizations.


Key Themes and Concepts
5 themes of female physical educators: 1) feminity versus masculinity. 2) Biology as destiny. 3) Separate gender spheres of influence 4) Fear of unwomanly behavior 5) Medical views on the effects of sports on women’s bodies.

[Sarah Sutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comprehensive guide of the development of women’s basketball from its inception until 1991. There are so many things that I didn’t know and this book made me reflect upon the influence of the NCAA and the ways in which Title IX actually hurt the development of women’s basketball

This book was written in 1991 and I wonder if the contributors ever could have imagined where we are today. The formation of a professional women’s basketball league (WNBA) wasn’t even in the works yet, women’s college basketball stars are making millions of dollars in NIL, millions of people are watching women’s college basketball, and the athleticism and way the game is played has changed. If this book was written today there would have been an entire section dedicated to Kim Mulkey. Who would have thought that basketball could still change so much after 1991.

Players at the time this book was written still had to maintain amateur status to play after college. Now we have a whole pro league and opportunities to play over seas. It is truly incredible how much women’s basketball has developed in a century, especially the drastic changes since the 1970s.