National Collegiate Athletic Association
NCAA News Archive - 2000
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The NCAA News
Athlete's art is Olympic effort
The original rules of basketball may soon be on display at a university near you -- along with other Naismith memorabilia.
The original draft of the rules -- not displayed since it was written and signed by the game's inventor, James Naismith -- is among the items highlighting the Naismith Millennium Sportsmanship Tour, which will be on display over a two-year period at cities throughout the country.
The nonprofit Naismith International Basketball Foundation (NIBF) -- established by the descendants of James Naismith --has scheduled the tour to extend through 2001.
Highlights include the display of the 108-year-old original draft of the rules and never-before-seen photos from the Naismith family archives, as well as a display of memorabilia on loan from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts.
During the tour, the NIBF will present the Naismith Good Sportsmanship Award to selected players, coaches and other influential figures in basketball who are chosen for their role in furthering the values of sportsmanship --both on and off the court.
The tour also will raise funds for the foundation, which works to promote respect, fair play and teamwork through a variety of initiatives designed to bring positive, basketball-based activities to schools and communities.
The first stop on the tour was Springfield College, which also was honored with the NIBF's Naismith Good Sportsmanship Award.
"I wanted Springfield College to be the first college showing these items because this is where the game was invented and the first game was played," said Ian Naismith, a great-grandson of James Naismith as well as the organizer of the tour and founder of NIBF.
"I believe that viewers (of the tour's exhibits) will capture a better sense of James Naismith, who was orphaned at age eight and a high-school dropout who went on to achieve multiple degrees, including four doctorates in medicine, theology and other fields," Naismith said.
"He was a minister and physician who believed that he could better influence people's values through sport than from the pulpit.
"Viewers also will come away with some lesser known but very interesting basketball facts and history. Basketball is the only major sport in the world invented by a particular person at a specific time and place and with an existing set of rules."
Also on hand at Springfield was the NIBF Fun Van, which is a traveling exhibit focusing on the history of basketball and stressing the importance of fun, respect and good sportsmanship.
Catamounts are hot shots
The women's basketball team at the University of Vermont showed some incredible accuracy in a recent 99-65 win over the University of Hartford.
The Catamounts shot 60 percent from the field and an astounding 72.2 percent from three-point range, including 87.5 percent (7 of 8) in the first half.
Vermont made its first seven three-point field goals to open the game, and the Catamounts also had eight different players drain a shot from beyond the arc.
NACDA dealine nears
The deadline for nominating students for the NACDA John McLendon Memorial Minority Postgraduate Scholarships Award Program is February 4. Nominations may be faxed or shipped via overnight delivery, but they must be in the NACDA office by the deadline.
Five winners will receive a $10,000 grant to be used toward postgraduate studies.
For more information, contact Laurie Garrison or Brian Horning at the NACDA office at 440/892-4000, or e-mail them at lgarrison@nacda.com or horningb@nacda.com.
'Dare to Play Fair'
Colleges and universities will join elementary, middle and high schools from all 50 states and 101 countries to participate in the 10th annual National Sportsmanship Day "Dare to Play Fair" program March 7.
The objective of National Sportsmanship Day (NSD) is to promote students' appreciation of the critical role of ethics, honesty, peaceful conflict resolution and fair play in athletics and society.
Participating schools are provided with an instructional packet containing suggested activities aimed at furthering the principles of sportsmanship and fair play. Past activities have included essay and poster contests, student roundtable discussions and coaches' forums.
To participate in NSD, contact the NSD headquarters at 800/447-9889 or see the Web site at www.internationalsport.com for more information.
On March 7, there will be a live chat room on the NSD Web site where anyone can engage in the discussion of sportsmanship issues. Guest sports celebrities will be online to answer questions from students, coaches and others.
Number crunching
Division I Basketball
Midseason Trends
Division I Men
Midseason Final
| 2000 | 1999 | 1999 | |
| Teams | 318 | 310 | 310 |
| Games | 15.0 | 13.9 | 29.1 |
| FG Made | 25.3 | 25.0 | 24.8 |
| FG Att. | 58.0 | 57.3 | 57.0 |
| FG % | 43.6% | 43.7% | 43.6% |
| 3FG Made | 6.0 | 5.9 | 5.9 |
| 3FG Att | 17.6 | 17.2 | 17.4 |
| 3FG % | 34.2% | 34.2% | 34.2% |
| 2FG Made | 19.3 | 19.1 | 18.9 |
| 2FG Att. | 40.4 | 40.1 | 39.6 |
| 2FG % | 47.8% | 47.6% | 47.7% |
| FT Made | 14.4 | 14.5 | 14.7 |
| FT Att. | 21.4 | 21.7 | 21.6 |
| FT % | 67.3% | 67.1% | 67.8% |
| Points | 71.0 | 70.5 | 70.3 |
Division I Women
Midseason Final
| 2000 | 1999 | 1999 | |
| Teams | 315 | 304 | 304 |
| Games | 14.7 | 13.5 | 27.9 |
| FG Made | 24.3 | 24.7 | 24.5 |
| FG Att. | 59.5 | 59.4 | 58.9 |
| FG % | 40.9% | 41.5% | 41.6% |
| 3FG Made | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.2 |
| 3FG Att. | 13.9 | 13.2 | 13.3 |
| 3FG % | 31.7% | 31.0% | 31.4% |
| 2FG Made | 19.9 | 20.6 | 20.3 |
| 2FG Att. | 45.7 | 46.2 | 45.6 |
| 2FG % | 43.6% | 44.5% | 44.5% |
| FT Made | 13.9 | 14.7 | 14.5 |
| FT Att. | 20.7 | 22.0 | 21.5 |
| FT % | 66.8% | 66.8% | 67.6% |
| Points | 66.9 | 68.1 | 67.7 |