The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame is an international museum dedicated to preserving the history of women's basketball.
Below are a few key historical facts throughout the history of women's basketball.
1891-1962
1891 | Basketball invented by Dr. James Naismith |
1892 | Senda Berenson adapts the rules for women and introduces the game at Smith College |
1892 | First inter-institutional (extramural) contest between the University of California and Miss Head's School |
1893 | Clara Gregory Baer introduces basketball to girls at Sophie Newcomb College in New Orleans |
1895 | First publicly played basketball game in the South (demonstration game at the Southern Athletic Club in New Orleans by Sophie Newcomb College students) |
1895 | Clara Gregory Baer publishes first basketball rules for women, called "Basquette" |
1896 | First intercollegiate game is played between Stanford University and University of California at Berkeley |
1899 | Formation of Women's Basketball Rules Committee. Senda Berenson's rules first published by Spalding |
1901 | First "Official" publication of Basket Ball for Women by Spalding Athletic Library with Senda Berenson as editor |
1903 | Halves shortened from 20 minutes to 15 minutes |
1905 | Executive Committee on Basketball Rules (National Women's Basketball Committee) is formed under auspices of the American Physical Education Association (APEA) |
1906 | Five to nine players on a side |
1908 | Placing one hand on a ball held by an opponent is a foul; double teaming a shooter is a foul |
1910 | Dribbling is outlawed |
1913 | Officiating first appears in guides; single dribble returns, but ball must bounce knee high |
1916 | No coaching is allowed from the sidelines during game (except halftime) No timeouts, no substitutions |
1918 | Basket with open bottom instead of closed basket with pull chain becomes official |
1918 | Bounce pass legalized. Substitutes may be used, but they cannot reenter the game |
1922 | There must be at least six players on a side, maximum of nine |
1923 | Formation of the Women's Division of the National Amateur Athletic Federation (NAAF) |
1925 | Goals scored by one-hand overhand throw, two-hand underhand throw, shot-put throw, and throw with back to basket count as one point |
1926 | Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) sponsors first-ever national women's basketball championship, using men's rules |
1927 | Players must wear numbers on the back of their jerseys |
1928 | Formation of first national women's officiating board: Women's National Officials Rating Committee |
1929 | First AAU All-American team selected |
1931 | Techniques for officiating included in rulebook |
1931 | Babe Didrikson leads Golden Cyclones to AAU national title |
1932 | All field goals count as two points |
1932 | Guarding on all planes permitted |
1935 | Tulsa Business College Stenos win the second of three consecutive AAU national titles |
1936 | Formation of the All American Red Heads |
1938 | Three-court game changed to two-court game with six players per team (three guards and three forwards) |
1951 | Hanes Hosiery wins the first of three consecutive AAU national titles |
1953 | Overtime period established - following one overtime, games are decided by sudden death |
1953 | USA wins gold in first World Championships |
1955 | USA women's basketball team plays in first Pan American Games basketball competition and wins the gold medal |
1956 | Ball can be tied with two hands held by opponent: three seconds in the lane is a violation |
1958 | The Wayland Baptist Flying Queens achieved a 131-game winning streak and captured 4 AAU national titles |
1962 | Each team is permitted two players to roam the court; player is allowed to snatch the ball from opponent |
1962 | Nashville Business College wins first of eight consecutive AAU National Titles |
1965 | Joint Committee AAU/DGWA Rules established |
1962-Present
1966 | Continuous unlimited dribble becomes official rule |
1969 | First National Invitational Intercollegiate Basketball Tournament is held at West Chester State College in Pennsylvania |
1971 | Five player, full-court game and 30 second shot clock become official |
1971 | The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) is formed, giving women an opportunity to compete in national championships |
1972 | Immaculata College wins first of three consecutive AIAW women's national collegiate basketball championships |
1975 | First Kodak All-American Team |
1976 | Team USA makes its Olympic debut |
1977 | Lusia Harris of Delta State University is awarded the first Broderick Cup as the most outstanding athlete in the AIAW |
1978 | Formation of Women's Professional Basketball League (eight teams) |
1978 | Carol Blazejowski is named the inaugural recipient of the Wade Trophy |
1981 | Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) is formed |
1981 | Kentucky State University won the first championship sponsored by a major integrated intercollegiate governing organization in 1981. (NAIA) |
1982 | Rutgers defeats the University of Texas in the final AIAW championship. Louisiana Tech defeats Cheyney State in the first NCAA national championships |
1984 | USA captures its first Olympic gold medal in Los Angeles |
1984 | West Virginia's Georgeann Wells registers the first dunk in women's collegiate basketball |
1986 | Nancy Lieberman becomes the first woman to play in a men's professional basketball league when she joins the USBL's Springfield Fame |
1986 | Three-point field goals introduced to collegiate basketball |
1988 | USA wins gold medal at the Seoul Olympics |
1991 | The Liberty Basketball Association is launched, folds after one exhibition game |
1992 | USA finished with bronze medal at Barelona Olympics |
1996 | USA recaptures the gold medal at the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta |
1996 | American Basketball League (ABL) was form and lasted two full seasons before folding during the third season |
1997 | Inaugural WNBA season |
1999 | The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame opens in Knoxville, TN |
2000 | Houston Comets win fourth consecutive WNBA titles |
2001 | Jackie Stiles becomes the leading scorer in NCAA Division I women's basketball history with 3,133 points |
2002 | Lisa Leslie of the Los Angeles Sparks becomes the first woman to dunk during a professional game |
2003 | The WBL celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the first professional women's basketball game |
2004 | The University of Connecticut defeats Tennessee 70-61 in New Orleans to win its third straight national championship |
2006 | Epiphanny Prince sets a national girls' scoring record with 113 points in a single game |
2008 | The University of Tennessee women's basketball team defeats Stanford to win its eighth national championship |
2008 | USA wins fourth straight gold medal in the Beijing Olympics |
2009 | Pat Summitt becomes the first Division I coach, men's or women's to reach 1,000 wins |
2010 | The University of Connecticut records its second consecutive undefeated season and captures its seventh national championship |
2010 | The USA women's basketball team captured the 2010 gold medal at the FIBA World Championships with a win over Czech Republic (89-69) |
2010 | The University of Connecticut sets the longest win streak (men's or women's) in college basketball at 90 consecutive victories |
2012 | Baylor University records an undefeated season, winning the most games ever in a season 40 |
2013 | Geno Auriemma ties Pat Summitt for the most national championships (8) as the University of Connecticut defeats Louisville |
2016 | Geno Auriemma passes John Wooden with 11 National Championship most by any college coach men's or women's |
2017 | Tara VanDerveer joined the late Pat Summitt, a dear friend who died last summer from early-onset Alzheimer's disease with 1,098 wins to her name, as the only other women's coach to reach 1,000 career victories |
2017 | Kelsey Plum makes NCAA women's basketball history by dropping 57 points to become the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Women's Basketball history |
Congratulations Class of 2017
The Class of 2017 include Sally Bell, Christine Grant, Rick Insell, Louise O'Neal, Sheryl Swoopes and Kara Wolters