The transformation of the basketball backboard in college has been extensive. At first, the backboard could be any material, leading to players guessing regarding how to rebound the ball. Later, glass backboards became the norm, and now the college game uses backboards made of reinforced fiberglass.
Backboard
The backboard was originally added to the basketball hoop to prevent the fans from tampering with the ball. Before the backboard was added, fans could help their favorite team's ball fall into the basket. In fact, many fans chose to sit by the basket just so they could help a team score and ultimately win the game. The original backboard was made of different materials and was shaped like a fan. The size was 4 by 6 feet, according to My-Youth-Basketball-Player.
Vision
The glass backboard was invented in 1909, cites Basketball-Drills-and-Tips.com. However, it took a few years before college gymnasiums used this type of backboard. The glass material allowed fans to see the ball from all areas in the stands. Previously, the fans who sat behind the basket had a huge obstruction blocking their vision and were not always able to see their team score a basket.
George Levis
George Levis contributed to both the sport of college basketball and the type of backboards college players used. Levis, a pivotal player in the history of college basketball, played for the Wisconsin Badgers and eventually earned a spot in the hall of fame. Once he graduated, he went on to coach at Indiana University. One of the most beneficial things he did for college basketball was to work in his family's glass factory, where he helped design and build a glass backboard for college teams.
Break the Backboard
While backboards today have reinforcement and protection, there was a time when glass backboards could shatter. Darvin Ham was one of the first men to break a backboard while playing for the Texas Tech Red Raiders in an NCAA tournament game in 1996, according to "The Baltimore Sun." Texas Tech was playing North Carolina when the broken backboard scattered glass as far as the opposite free throw line and caused a 26-minute delay in the game. It also startled the Tar Heels so much that they lost by nearly 20 points.
References
- My-Youth-Basketball-Player: The Rules of Basketball: Boy, How They've Changed!
- Basketball-Drills-and-Tips.com: A Brief History of Basketball
- Basketball Historian: Basketball Heroes
- "The Baltimore Sun"; Texas Tech Shatters UNC After a Ham Slam, 92-73: Backboard-Breaking Bucket Inspires Rout of Tar Heels; Roch Eric Kubatko; March 1996
Member Comments