Timeline of women's basketball

1885 • Formation of the Association for the Advancement of Physical Education == 1891–1900 ==

1891 • James Naismith, born in Almonte, Ontario, invents basketball while teaching at a school now known as Springfield College 1892 • Senda Berenson reads about Dr. Naismith's new game, and with modified rules, introduces the game to Smith College students. • First inter-institutional game between the University of California, Berkeley and Miss Head's School. 1893 • Clara Gregory Baer introduces (as it was written at the time) to Sophie Newcomb College (now part of Tulane University) • The first public women's basketball game in the South is played at a men's only club, the Southern Athletic Club. 1897 • First recorded women's basketball game in Australia, played in Victoria, using wet paper bags for baskets. File:Senda Berenson.jpg|alt=A photograph of Senda Berenson, a pioneer of women's basketball, who authored the first Basketball Guide for Women|Senda Berenson File:California-berkeley-womens-basketball-team-1899.png|University of California-Berkeley women's basketball team, photographed in 1899 File:Newcomb Handbook.jpg|Clara Gregory Baer's original rules of Newcomb ball == 1901–1910 ==

1904 • Stanford rescinds the prohibition against intercollegiate competition of women. 1906 • Women's basketball featured on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post File:Saturday evening post 1906 Oct 06.jpg|Saturday evening post 1906 Oct 06 featuring women's basketball File:Minnesota 1909.jpg|1909 University of Minnesota women's basketball team == 1911–1920 ==

1913 • RULE Change—A single dribble is permitted as long as it bounces knee-high 1915 • The Edmonton Grads, then known as the Commercial High School basketball team, won the Intercollegiate Basketball League. They would go on to play as the Grads, with a record of 502–20 between 1915 and 1940. James Naismith would go on to refer to them as "the finest basketball team that ever stepped out on a floor". 1916 • RULE Change—Coaching from sidelines prohibited during game, except for halftime Substitutes allowed for first time (but cannot re-enter game). The bounce pass is allowed == 1921–1930 ==

1921 • Basketball played for perhaps the first time in Europe at the 1921 Women's Olympiad 1926 • The Amateur Athletic Union sponsored the first-ever American national women's basketball championship. 1927 • RULE Change—Players must wear a number on the back == 1931–1940 ==

1932 • RULE Change—guarding another player first allowed • FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, is formed in Geneva. • The All American Red Heads Team a barnstorming professional team was formed. They were the first professional women's basketball team. They would go on to tour the country for 50 years, playing men's teams using men's rules. 1938 • RULE Change—The court is now divided into two sections, rather than three. Team size remains six players each. == 1941–1950 ==

1947 • RULE Change—Players must wear a number on the front and the back • RULE Change—Players now allowed a two-bounce dribble. (Continuous dribble used in experimental season, but not adopted) == 1951–1960 ==

1951 • RULE Change—Coaching from sidelines during time outs permitted • RULE Change—Three second rule implemented. Players in the offensive lane may not hold the ball for more than three seconds. 1959 • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—Soviet Union :: Silver—Bulgaria :: Bronze—Czechoslovakia == 1961–1970 ==

1962 • First women officials in AAU national tournament—Fran Koening and Carol Walter • RULE Change—Two "rovers" allowed (players permitted to run the entire court) • West Chester (Pennsylvania) defeated Western Carolina 65–39 in the CIAW invitational tournament 1970 • Cal State-Fullerton defeated West Chester 50–46 in the CIAW invitational tournament == 1971–1980 ==

1971 • FIBA World Championship for Women • Mississippi State College for Women defeated West Chester 57–55 in the CIAW invitational tournament • UBC Thunderbirds won the inaugural Bronze Baby, awarded to the winner of the Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union (CIAU; now U Sports) women's basketball tournament. • UBC Thunderbirds won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the CIAU winner in women's basketball • FIBA World Championship for Women • First Broderick Cup awarded to "the best athlete in each sport". The first recipient was Lusia Harris. • Laurentian Lady Vees won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the CIAU winner in women's basketball • First Wade Trophy awarded to the best women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I competition The first recipient was Carol Blazejowski. • Laurentian Lady Vees won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the CIAU winner in women's basketball • UCLA defeated Maryland 90–74 in the AIAW large college invitational tournament • High Point (North Carolina) won the AIAW Division II invitational tournament 1979 • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Korea :: Bronze—Canada • Laurentian Lady Vees won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS; now U Sports) winner in women's basketball • Old Dominion defeated Louisiana Tech 75–65 in the AIAW large college invitational tournament • South Carolina State won the AIAW Division II invitational tournament 1980 • Olympic competition for women :: Gold—Soviet Union :: Silver—Bulgaria :: Bronze—Yugoslavia • Victoria Vikes won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the CIS winner in women's basketball • Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) established, with responsibility for eight sports including basketball • Old Dominion defeated Tennessee 68–53 in the AIAW Division I invitational tournament • University of Dayton won the AIAW Division II invitational tournament • Worcester State College (Massachusetts) won the AIAW Division III invitational tournament == 1981–1990 ==

1981 • The Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), an association of coaches of women's basketball teams at all levels, is formed. • St Kilda Saints won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • USC (29–4) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Cal Poly Pomona (30-3) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Salem State (29-1) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Toronto Varsity Blues won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Nunawading Spectres won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • RULE Change—The alternating possession arrow is first used, although a jump ball is still used at the beginning of the game, and the beginning of overtime. Coaches must stay within coaching box, and only the head coach may stand while the ball is live • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Soviet Union :: Bronze—Canada 1987 • RULE Change—The three-point field goal is introduced for any field goal completed when shot beyond a line set at 19 feet, and 9 inches from the center of the basket. • Tennessee (28-6) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • New Haven (29-2) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Wisconsin–Stevens Point (27-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Victoria Vikes won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Nunawading Spectres won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1988 • Olympic competition for women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Yugoslavia :: Bronze—Soviet Union • Louisiana Tech (32–2) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Hampton (33-1) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Concordia-Moorhead (29-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Manitoba Bisons won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Nunawading Spectres won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1989 • Tennessee (35–2) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Delta State (30-4) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Elizabethtown (29-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Calgary Dinos won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Nunawading Spectres won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1990 • Stanford (32–1) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Delta State (32-1) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Hope (24-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Laurentian Lady Vees won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • North Adelaide Rockets won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Yugoslavia :: Bronze—Cuba == 1991–2000 ==

1991 • Tennessee (30–5) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota State (31-2) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • St. Thomas (MN) (29-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Laurentian Lady Vees won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Hobart Islanders won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1992 • Olympic competition for women :: Gold—Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) :: Silver—China :: Bronze—USA • Stanford (30–3) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Delta State (30-4) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Alma (24-3) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Victoria Vikes won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Perth Breakers won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1993 • Texas Tech (31-3) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota State (30-2) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Central (IA) (24-5) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Winnipeg Wesmen won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Sydney Flames won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • The WBA (Women's Basketball Association) plays its first official game on its way to three seasons of Women's Professional Basketball. 1994 • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—Brazil :: Silver—China :: Bronze—Cuba • North Carolina (33-2) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota State (27-5) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Capital (30-1) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Winnipeg Wesmen won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Adelaide Lightning won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1995 • Connecticut (35–0) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota State (32-0) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Capital (33-0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Winnipeg Wesmen won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Adelaide Lightning won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship 1996 • Olympic competition for women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Brazil :: Bronze—Australia • Tennessee (32-4) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota State (30-2) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Wisconsin-Oshkosh (31-0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Manitoba Bisons won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Adelaide Lightning won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • The WNBA is founded, with eight initial teams. Sheryl Swoopes is the first player signed. • The American Basketball League (ABL) formed, a professional basketball league for women in the United States. It lasted two full seasons, and suspended operations in the third. 1997 • Tennessee (29–10) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota (28-4) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • NYU (29-1) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Manitoba Bisons won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Sydney Flames won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • First WNBA draft, with Tina Thompson as the first player selected. The first game is held on 21 June 1997, between the New York Liberty and the Los Angeles Sparks. The Liberty won 67–57. • The Houston Comets win the first WNBA Championship. • Trent Tucker Rule adopted by WNBA. 1998 • Tennessee (39-0) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota (31-1) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Washington (MO) (28-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Victoria Vikes won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Adelaide Lightning won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • FIBA World Championship for Women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Russia :: Bronze—Australia • The Houston Comets won the WNBA Championship. 1999 • Purdue (34–1) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • North Dakota (31-1) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Washington (MO) (30-0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Alberta Pandas won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Australian Institute of Sport won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • The Houston Comets won the WNBA Championship. 2000 • Olympic competition for women :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Australia :: Bronze—Brazil • Connecticut (36–1) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Northern Kentucky (32-2) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Washington (MO) (30-0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Victoria Vikes won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Canberra Capitals won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • First outdoor college basketball game: Tennessee defeats Arizona 67–63 • The Houston Comets won the WNBA Championship. == 2001–2010 ==

2001 • Notre Dame (34–2) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Simon Fraser Clan won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • The Los Angeles Sparks won the WNBA Championship. • Canberra Capitals won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship the streak ended at 90 wins. • Emporia State (30-5) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Washington (MO) (29-2) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • Simon Fraser Clan won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball • Canberra Capitals won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • The Seattle Storm won the WNBA Championship. == 2011–2020 ==

2011 • Texas A&M (33-5) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • The Minnesota Lynx won the WNBA Championship. • UConn (40–0), which had changed its official athletic brand name from "Connecticut" after the 2012–13 season, won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • The Phoenix Mercury won the WNBA Championship. 2015 • UConn (38–1) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • California (PA) (32–4) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. :: Gold—USA :: Silver—Spain :: Bronze—Serbia • The University of Saskatchewan Huskies (18–2) won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport winner in women's basketball. • The WNBL switches from a single game to a best of 3 finals • Townsville Fire won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • With their eleventh championship win in 2016, the UConn Huskies (38–0) passed the UCLA Bruins men's team for most college basketball championships, and became the first Division 1 women's basketball team to win four straight national championships. • Breanna Stewart was named the AP Player Of The Year (making her the first female college basketball player to win that award three times) • Breanna Stewart was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four (making her the first person to be most outstanding player of the Final Four four times) • Lubbock Christian University (35–0) won the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship • Thomas More (33–0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • The Los Angeles Sparks won the WNBA Championship. 2017 • The UConn Huskies women's basketball team obtained the longest winning streak in college basketball (both men's and women's), 111 straight wins, which started with a win against Creighton on December 23, 2014, and continued for 111 games until March 31, 2017, when they were beaten 66–64 on a last second shot in overtime by Mississippi State in the 2017 NCAA Final Four. This streak included an undefeated season in 2015–16. • McGill University (25–9) won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the women's basketball champion of the newly renamed U Sports. • Sydney Uni Flames won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • Ashland (37–0) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Amherst (33–0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • The Minnesota Lynx won the WNBA Championship. 2018 • Carleton won the Bronze Baby, awarded to the U Sports women's basketball champion. • Townsville Fire won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • Central Missouri (30–3) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship • Amherst (33–0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship • The Seattle Storm won the WNBA Championship. • UC Capitals won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • Lubbock Christian (32–5) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. • Thomas More (33–0) won the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship. • The Washington Mystics won the WNBA Championship. • UC Capitals won the Australian Women's National Basketball League Championship • The Seattle Storm won the WNBA Championship. • After Gregg Popovich was ejected in the second quarter in the Spurs' 121–107 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on December 30, 2020, Becky Hammon became the first female acting head coach in NBA history. == 2021–2030 ==

2021 • The first WNBA Commissioner's Cup, delayed from its originally planned 2020 launch due to COVID-19 issues, was held, with the Seattle Storm defeating the Connecticut Sun in the Cup final in Phoenix. • The Bronze Baby championship was not held due to COVID-19 issues. • Stanford (31–2) won the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament • Lubbock Christian (23–0) won the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. • The NCAA Division III championship was canceled. • Starting with the 2021–22 season, the three-point line in US college women's basketball was moved to the FIBA distance, a change that had been made in men's basketball for NCAA Division I in 2019–20 and other NCAA divisions in 2020–21. • The Chicago Sky won the WNBA Championship. • NCAA championships: • Division I: South Carolina defeated UConn 64–49 in the championship game. This was UConn's first loss in 12 NCAA championship games. • Division II: Glenville State defeated Western Washington 85–72 in the championship game. • In the first Division III tournament since 2019, Hope defeated Wisconsin–Whitewater 71–58 in the championship game. • The Las Vegas Aces won the WNBA Championship. • Transylvania (33–0) defeated Christopher Newport 57–52 to win the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship. • Clarke defeated Thomas More 63–52 to win the NAIA championship. • The Las Vegas Aces won the WNBA Championship. • Minnesota State (32–5) defeated Texas Woman's University 89–73 to win the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. • NYU (31–0) defeated Smith 51–41 to win the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship. • Dordt defeated Providence (MT) 57–53 to win the NAIA championship. • The New York Liberty won the WNBA Championship. • Grand Valley State (38–2) defeated Cal State Dominguez Hills 70–58 to win the NCAA Women's Division II Basketball Championship. • NYU (31–0) defeated Smith 77–49 to win the NCAA Women's Division III Basketball Championship. It was the first ever championship rematch in NCAA D3 history. • Dordt defeated Indiana Wesleyan 82–73 to win the 2025 NAIA championship. • The Las Vegas Aces won the WNBA Championship. • A'ja Wilson becomes the first person in WNBA history to win MVP, Finals MVP, Defensive Player of The Year, and a championship. This also marked her fourth MVP, the most of any WNBA player. == See also ==