The players were surprised by the bigger than usual ball.
Kara Lawson gave strong feedback to the officials of the match. ZumaWire / MVPHOTOS
Wrong ball played in USA Women’s College Basketball Series game, USA Today news.
Coach at Duke University Kara Lawson said that throughout the first half his players were complaining that something was wrong with the ball. At halftime, it was revealed that the reason for the grumbling was that the game had been played with a men’s ball that was one and a half inches larger in circumference than the women’s ball.
Measured in centimetres, the difference is 2.5–4.3 centimetres, depending on the ball.
– It is frustrating that such a mistake occurs at this level, which could have affected the outcome of the match, Duke University coach Kara Lawson said at a press conference.
– This would never happen in the men’s game. This is shameful for our sport, the woman who won basketball gold as a player in the USA team at the Tokyo Olympics snorted.
For the second half of the match, a real women’s ball was brought into play. Duke suffered its second loss of the season against Florida, 70–57.
Lawson said he wanted to make a protest about it after the match, but the officials had not agreed to it.