USA - Small ball makes seven minute appearance in NCAA game

OAKLAND (NCAA) - Basketball players can be very fussy when it comes to the slightest change in equipment. New shoes take some time to get comfortable with, a change of flooring is treated with suspicion. And when a league decides to use a new ball, a lengthy and passionate debate usually follows.

Which makes it all the more surprising that the first seven minutes of the NCAA encounter between Illinois and Oakland on Wednesday were played with...
...a small size six women's basketball.

Illinois' Demetry McCamey, who finished with a game-high 30 points, said: "After my first shot I thought, 'This can't be right."'

The size six ball used for women's competition can - according to the Official Rules of Basketball - be up to 5.6cm smaller and up to 140g lighter than the men's size seven ball.

The smaller size six ball, now used in the women's game worldwide, was only introduced by FIBA in 2004. Prior to that, the balls used in women's competition were the exactly the same as the ones (size seven) used in the men's.

While McCamey says that he spotted it early, he was unable to convince the officials. It took the support of a team-mate for them to take notice, as the ball was finally exchanged for the correct one midway through the eighth minute.

Once the mistake had been corrected, the game resumed with the appropriate sized ball, with Illinois going on to record a 74-63 victory.

In this particular case, it was noted by CBS Sport - who first ran the story - that in spite of the swap back to an appropriately sized ball, the shooting stats did not improve.

Commenting on this unlikely mix-up in a post-game interview, Oakland coach Greg Kampe said: "I've coached 33 years and that's a first".

FIBA