Scott Adamson, Author at Adamsonmedia.com

The evolution of women’s basketball

On this day in 1969, West Chester State College – under the umbrella of the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women – won the first national championship in women’s basketball.

The Golden Rams defeated Western Carolina, 65-39, in front of 2,000 fans in West Chester, Pennsylvania, with Pat Ferguson scoring a game-high 20 points. The competition was organized by West Chester coach and assistant professor of health and physical education Carol Eckman, now known as the “mother of the collegiate women’s basketball national championship.”

**Scott Adamson writes stuff. Follow him on Bluesky @scottadamson1960.bsky.social**

Humble beginnings?

Quite.

The game barely rated more than a few lines in newspapers, with the Philadelphia Inquirer burying a six-paragraph report (under the headline West Chester Wins Title In Girls’ Tourney) on page 12 of its sports section.

But while all sports evolve to varying degrees, what women’s roundball fans saw then and what they see now are wildly different games altogether.

West Chester claimed the crown by playing six-on-six basketball, a style that featured three forwards and three guards. But get this – only forwards were allowed to shoot the ball and had to stay in the frontcourt while the guards stayed in the backcourt. In other words, forwards played only offense while guards played strictly defense.

Yet while Title IX (passed in 1972) was a catalyst for making women’s basketball more like the men’s game – five-on-five, full court, shot clock, etc. – the NCAA didn’t sponsor a women’s national championship game until 1982. Up to that point, the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (which grew from the CIAW) coordinated events before dissolving in 1983.

The NCAA voted to sponsor a women’s hoops championship in January, 1981, at its 75^th annual convention (surviving a legal challenge from the AIAW), and the inaugural NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament field was announced on March 6, 1982. Louisiana Tech was named the top seed in the 32-team bracket.

The first tourney game was held on March 12, 1982, when Penn State hosted Clemson. The homestanding Nittany Lions won big, 96-75, with a crowd of 2,553 witnessing history.

Louisiana Tech, which claimed the AIAW title the previous season, went on to win the championship thanks to a 76-62 conquest of Cheyney State (current LSU coach Kim Mulkey was a member of the Lady Techsters and made the All-Tournament Team), and women’s hoops has only grown from there.

And I’m glad, because I’m a big fan and have been for years.

Aside from the fact that I enjoy the sport in general, women’s basketball – especially elite women’s basketball – has always impressed me due to the fundamental aspect of it. While the men’s game is often played above the rim, the women rely more on sharp shooting and defense. If you want to learn about how the game is supposed to be played from a technique standpoint, a good women’s matchup is the best teaching tool.

In fact, when I look back on my sports writing career, some of my favorite moments involved covering women’s basketball. During the decade I worked in South Carolina, one of my beats was Anderson University, a Division II school.

The Trojans were a perennial powerhouse and regulars in the annual DII regionals. Man, they were fun to watch, playing aggressive “D” while launching – and landing – bombs from beyond the arc.

And I also got to write about the University of South Carolina, just as Dawn Staley was building a dynasty in Columbia.

Watching the Gamecocks play meant at times I was watching near perfection.

So, I’m thrilled at how far the game has come. Not only do many NCAA teams play before packed houses, but they feature incredible athletes.

The leading candidate for Player of the Year this season is JuJu Watkins, who averaged 24.6 points per game for Southern Cal during the 2024-25 regular season. She’ll lead her team against UNC Greensboro today.

Other members of the Associated Press First Team All-American team are Paige Bueckers, UConn; Lauren Betts, UCLA; Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame; and Madison Booker, Texas.

All of them, by the way, are playing in the NCAA Tournament.

Hidalgo had 24 points in the Fighting Irish’s 106-54 romp over Stephen F. Austin on Friday, while Betts tallied 14 points to lead the Bruins to a decisive 84-46 victory over Southern in oprning round play.

If you’re a fan of college basketball, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. You’ll see some blowouts to go along with a few startling upsets, and learn to appreciate teams you hadn’t even thought about until now.

And thanks to pioneers like Carol Eckman, the Big Dance is coed.

Pro/rel coming to USL

**The USL announced on Wednesday it would implement a promotion/relegation system to coincide with its plan to add a top-tier division in 2028.**

Back in 2020, when Greenville Triumph SC won the championship of USL League One, I remember thinking how bittersweet it was. At the time I was a resident of the city, so I was happy for them, of course. After all, my local soccer team had earned a crown, and that’s a big deal. But in just their second season, they’d already hit the ceiling.

Without a system of promotion and relegation – the standard in international association football – there was nowhere to go. The USL Championship was atop the pyramid in the United Soccer League system, and its lineup of franchises was set. A Triumph title in a lower circuit didn’t secure passage to a higher one.

But that’s all about to change.

Today the USL announced that a supermajority of owners voted to implement pro/rel. The news – some of the biggest in U.S. soccer history, if you ask me – comes on the heels of the organization’s plan to create a new Division One league starting in 2028.

“A new chapter in American soccer begins,” Alec Papadakis, CEO of the United Soccer League, said. “The decision by our owners to approve and move forward with this bold direction is a testament to their commitment to the long-term growth of soccer in the United States. This is a significant milestone for the USL and highlights our shared vision with our team ownership to build a league that not only provides top-tier competition but also champions community engagement. Now, just as it is in the global game, more communities in America can aspire to compete at the highest level of soccer.

“It’s time.”

Once the Division One league is formed, the USL Championship – already considered second division by United States Soccer Federation standards – will remain in that spot while League One will be D3. (The USL system also includes League Two, which is a developmental league with 74 teams).

USL officials have hinted for years that they were open-minded about pro/rel, but it never seemed to get beyond the talking stage.

The National Independent Soccer Association, on the other hand, was founded in 2017 with the intent of creating a pathway pyramid, but that didn’t happen. As of now, NISA is struggling to even stay afloat. It’s not sanctioned by USSF for 2025 and has long been overshadowed by MLS Next Pro and League One.

And Major League Soccer never has and never will consider it. In 2024 Forbes estimated that the average MLS club is worth $658 million.

League commissioner Don Garber famously (infamously?) said this about pro/rel in 2015:

“If you’re investing billions and billions of dollars, which we are now at about $3.5 billion invested (in MLS) in twenty years, to build something in Kansas City and they have a shitty season, to think they might be playing in Chattanooga in a stadium of 4,000 people on a crappy field with no fans, makes no sense.”

Garber later apologized (and Chattanooga FC is now part of MLS Next Pro), but the point was made. It’s a closed league and it’s staying that way.

Thus, the boldest step possible in domestic soccer is finally being taken by the USL.

“Promotion and relegation transforms the competitive landscape of American soccer,” Paul McDonough, President and CEO of the USL, said. “With the 2026 World Cup and other major international events approaching, we have a unique opportunity to build on that momentum and create a sustainable future for the sport in the U.S. Fans and stakeholders have been clear – they want something different. They’re drawn to the intensity of high-stakes competition, where more matches have real consequences – just like we see in European leagues.

“This shift challenges the status quo and brings a level of excitement and relevance that can elevate the game across the country.”

I’m truly excited about this. Moving up or dropping down based on sporting merit has long been a defining feature of international soccer, and soon – in the USL – every single match will matter. Few things are as dramatic as seeing some clubs climbing up the ladder and others desperately trying to avoid falling off.

Obviously, there are plenty of major details to be worked out. We don’t even know who’ll comprise the top division once it kicks off in 2028. And USSF Pro League Standards require first division clubs to play in stadiums that seat at least 15,000, which could create problems for those in cozy, smaller confines.

Still, this is major news for a circuit determined to take on Major League Soccer. And the investors who buy into the premiere division of USL will know exactly what they’re getting into.

Even though I no longer live in Greenville, I’m still gonna keep a close eye on the Triumph and root for their success.

Winning a trophy in 2020 was cool.

But winning promotion? That’s gonna be so much cooler.

A house full of memories

The old Queen Anne-style house situated just off the Highway 149 was definitely a fixer-upper, almost to the point of being an eyesore.

The dark grey eaves were in immediate need of major repair, with the edges frayed like a block of cheese that had been nibbled by a rat.

The faded white wraparound porch seemed fine at first glance, but a closer inspection revealed badly damaged spindle work and several rotted boards that made for hazardous walking. The porch columns needed reinforcement, and at least one had to be completely replaced due to a large crack that started at its base and ran all the way to the top.

Some of the bay windows were broken, all of the window treatments were a mess … there was a laundry list of renovation and restoration needs. Frankly, it was a miracle that a This Property Is Condemned sign hadn’t been tacked to the door.

Still, the house could certainly be restored to its original glory, but it wouldn’t happen overnight. It was going to cost a whole lot of money – and countless hours of work – to make it both presentable and livable.

Frederick and Nettie were hopeful, though; they had seen a realtor come by twice in the last week with two different parties. Whether the potential buyers were looking for a place to live or a place to flip didn’t really matter to the couple as long as someone fixed it up and moved back in.

“It’s been what, 12, 15 years since the Williams family lived here?” Frederick wondered aloud.

“Fourteen years,” Nettie said. “They moved out on March 17, 2011. I hated to seem ‘em go. I’ll never forget waving goodbye to that little girl – Marcy was her name. Such a sweet child. The whole family was good people.”

“They were, they were … Jane and Daryl Williams,” Frederick said wistfully. “Remember that funny dog they had? Dipper. Ol’ Dipper would just stand there and bark and bark at us and Mr. and Mrs. Williams never could get him to quiet down. But Marcy would walk over, look at us and smile. When she did that, Dipper would walk away and go about his business. Course, the next day it all started up again. I guess dogs have short memories.”

A car slowed down in front of the house, and both the driver and the passenger leaned in to take a closer look. They talked among themselves briefly, pointed at the property, then slowly eased back onto the road and drove away.

“Don’t guess they were interested in buying,” Nettie said. “You never know, though. That’s how the Carters found this place, you recall. They rode up in that fancy looking Packard Caribbean and she had on those big sunglasses and that polka dot bandana, and her little bitty husband was gobbled up in that velvety sport coat. It tickles me to even think about it. She walked right up on the porch and decided right then she wanted the place and he just laughed.”

“Oh, yeah, Dee and Desi Carter,” Frederick said. “Now, he was plenty nice and friendly but she was something else … she was something else entirely, and I mean that in a good way. Lordy, she loved to have those big parties, didn’t she? All those people would come around from all over, dressed to the nines, drinking whiskey sours and having a big time. Thing about her, it was like she knew what kinda music we liked and wanted to make us part of it, too. Every Halloween she’d put Down Hearted Blues and Memphis Blues on the gramophone. Every single Halloween, long about midnight. It made me think about those days when you sang and I played and we toured all over the country with W.C. Handy and Bessie Smith. That was awfully nice of her, I think. She’s another one I miss.”

Several families had come and gone, all making an impact on the couple one way or another. Nettie peered outside one of the windows on the second floor and watched as several more cars whizzed by – but not one gave the house a second look.

“Frederick, you think maybe it’s the stories that keep people away? You know, the stories about the murders. Everybody had pretty much forgotten about it, but then those ghost hunter shows started popping up and the next thing you know people start talking about the evil in this house. It ain’t right.”

Frederick glided over to Nettie and put his arm around her.

“Well, sugar,” he said. “The man that killed us was evil, but he’s gone now … went to prison first and now I’m pretty sure he’s in a place I don’t think anybody wants to go. But you and me? We’re just regular ol’ spirits, and this is where we belong. Little Marcy knew it. Mrs. Carter knew it, too. Don’t think anybody was ever really afraid of us, except maybe ol’ Dipper.

“No, this is a happy place. It’s our happy place. If we can just get another family in here, you and me will make sure they’re looked out for. Our house seems more like a home when we have company.”