Baseball and Basketball Origins

Though the game was invented and popularized by the YMCA, the organization was discouraging basketball within a decade of its creation, stating that the rough play and animated crowds detracted from their main mission. Basketball wouldn’t fade, however, as other clubs and colleges filled the gap. Before the first World War, the Amateur Athletic Union and Intercollegiate Athletic Association were the dominant clubs.

Naismith actually assisted in developing the college basketball game as well, coaching for six years at the University of Kansas. One of his protégés, Amos Alonzo Stagg, spread the game to the University of Chicago, and Adolph Rupp (a former student in Kansas) became a successful coach at the University of Kentucky. The college leagues began in the 1920’s, with the first national championship (the National Invitation Tournament or NIT) taking place in 1938.

The current incarnation of the college basketball league is the NCAA. With over 330 teams competing in 31 various conferences, the NCAA is one of the largest sports leagues in the world. In fact, the yearly NCAA Championship tournament is just as popular among viewers as the World Series of baseball, the Superbowl of football, and sometimes even more popular than the Stanley Cup of hockey.

By Peter Portero


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