If you ever listened to a women’s college basketball game, you might have noticed that there’s just a little something different from the men’s game. Well, that surely would be the format. Women’s college basketball is played in four quarters, whereas the men’s game is played in two halves. But why does the NCAA have women play quarters and men play halves, and how does that affect the rhythm of the game?
How Does the Four-Quarter Format Work?
A women’s college basketball game consists of four quarters, each 10 minutes long. This is a change from the men’s college game, which is split into two halves, each 20 minutes long. Switching to quarters started with the 2015-2016 season and has since become a tradition of women’s college basketball.
Still don’t know why men’s college basketball hasn’t adopted the four quarters format like the women did. Makes way more sense.
— MR. BURKS (@MrBurks206) March 21, 2025
Going to quarters was quite a big deal. Why? Because it’s a break with tradition. Before the change, the women’s game, like the men’s game, was two halves. The NCAA’s switch to four quarters was one of a number of changes that were intended to streamline the game and make it more exciting. It was also consistent with international basketball rules, like those used by the WNBA and FIBA, the international governing body of basketball. This change wasn’t solely in the interest of tradition; it was an effort to make the game play more smoothly and make it more appealing.
Every quarter is followed by a short recess. Squads have a 15-minute recess during halftime to strategize and unify for the second part of the game. If the game reaches a tie after regulation, overtime periods (5 minutes per period) are utilized to establish a champion. Overtime continues to roll until the champion is established, and this sometimes produces some unexpected and unexpected endings.
Why Did Women’s College Basketball Embrace the Quarters?
Changing from halves to quarters was not an easy decision. It was a deliberate action intended to improve some of the features of the game. Among the key reasons why the change took place was to speed up the game and make it less choppy and smoother.
In the previous two-half system, teams would also be in a position to find themselves where fouls were piling up fast towards the second half, resulting in extended free-throw shooting. Delays for free throws could delay the game and impact its overall pace, such that the game would seem to drag towards the end of the last few minutes.
By proceeding to quarters, the NCAA introduced a great alteration: they reset the team foul counts to zero at the start of each quarter. This eliminated the need to hurry up fouls in the second half, and the free-throw chances were easier to handle, maintaining the same game pace. The restart transferred the momentum and created a more thrilling game for viewers.
But it also doubled the number of times coaches and players are allowed to change between periods. Instead of being able to re-strategize just twice (at halftime and after the first 10 minutes), coaches now get to re-strategize and plan four times prior to every quarter. The added flexibility has also incorporated a strategy aspect into the game, where teams keep adapting nonstop according to what they see among their opponents.
How is the Men’s Game Different?
And while the women’s game transitioned to the four-quarter system, the men’s game still uses the more traditional two-half system. The halves are each 20 minutes long, and no foul clock is ever reset during the game. It feels different from that which you get with women’s basketball, when the second half comes on a little more slowly with more fouls racked up. The men’s game does have rhythm, though, and the reason it has persisted with the two-half format all these years is a testament to the tradition and history of the game.
Despite structural variations, men’s and women’s games alike yield quick and dynamic basketball. The half vs. quarter choice is merely one of numerous aspects that distinguish the two games.
How Does the Quarter Format Impact the Fan Experience?
The transition to quarters has brought more suspense and drama to women’s college basketball games. With fewer fouls hindering the action, the game itself appears to progress at a faster and more convenient pace. The audience is able to see the teams battle it out in smaller segments, and each quarter is a mini-game in itself within the whole competition. All of that has succumbed to more showreel football, as the teams score so quickly and so easily.
Secondly, as the fouls are also replaced at the start of each quarter, there is no room for a team getting an unfair advantage with too many fouls. The game, thus, remains more balanced, and the pace of the game is not lost due to free throws, as would have been the case under the two-half system.
So, how long does a women’s college hoops game last, and why does it use quarters? Most games are 40 minutes long, broken into four quarters of 10 minutes each. With quicker, shorter timeouts and neater foul resolution, the four-quarter format has given the game more varied pacing and more excitement for fans.
For basketball fans, the change to quarters has enriched women’s college basketball as an even more exciting and action-packed spectacle. Through enabling teams to reconfigure their fouls and providing coaches with more chances to strategize, the format has introduced new degrees of intensity and drama into the game. From the breakneck speed of a first-quarter lightning-fast break to the heart-stopping overtime theater, the women’s game has never been so entertaining to behold.
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Since women’s college basketball continues to grow in popularity and athleticism, the four-quarter format seems to be the lasting innovation that gives the game a quicker, more exciting, and more spectator-friendly product to the fans of the world.
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