PORTLAND, Ore. — The 3-point line at the women's NCAA tournament at the Moda Center had a disparity in distance on both ends of the court until Texas and North Carolina State were made aware of the issue before the game. It went unnoticed throughout the four games over two days. Sunday's Elite Eight matchup.
The NCAA said in a statement that coaches from both teams have agreed to play Sunday's game as scheduled despite the 3-point line misalignment rather than delaying it.
“The NCAA was notified (Sunday) that the 3-point lines on the court at Portland's Moda Center were not the same distance. Both head coaches recognized this discrepancy and decided to modify the court to delay the game. Instead, he chose to play a complete game on the court as it was,” he said in a statement.
The four Sweet 16 games played on Friday and Saturday were played without any participating teams saying anything publicly about the on-court issues.
During pregame warmups, Texas State coach Vic Schaefer and North Carolina State coach Wes Moore were informed that the distance of the 3-point line at the top of the key would be different on each end of the floor. The distance between the top of the key and his 3-point his line was shortened at one end.
NCAA officials were asked to measure distances, and about 15 minutes before tipoff, they brought out tape measures to check the distances. After consultation with NCAA representatives, coaches and officials, the game was played as scheduled.
The NCAA said the court will be corrected before Monday's Elite Eight game between Southern California and UW.