Have you noticed the overinflated basketballs at March Madness? They are causing an outrageous amount of turnovers and bad shooting.
This unfortunately continues to be a recurring issue.
Not every college basketball team is required to use the same ball during the regular season. This discrepancy leads to a lesser on-court product come the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The balls are overinflated at March Madness.
We have seen this problem before. What started out as a conspiracy among fans watching at home was confirmed as a legitimate issue by UConn’s Alex Karaban in 2024. It is a thing again this postseason.
A video from practice at the First Four on Tuesday showed the balls bouncing to the ceiling. (Not literally)
Wake Forest head coach Steve Forbes questioned why every ball is different. He does not understand why the NCAA does not mandate one specific ball for every team during every game.
“NCAA Bball is the only league in the world where games are played with several different brands of balls; Nike, Wilson, Under Armour, Spaulding, Adidas etc. depending on who and where you play; all are different. The NBA plays with 1 ball, FIBA plays with 1 ball, why can’t we?”
Forbes was not the only person to voice his frustrations. Head coaches and players all over the country cannot understand why it is not the same everywhere, always. Bennett Stirtz confirmed the difference. Iowa needed the open practice period to get used to the new balls.
Bennett Stirtz talked about how NCAA Tournament basketballs are different than the basketballs they’ve played with all season. Says they’re really full of air: “This open practice helps a lot.” pic.twitter.com/ODidfPj7zg
— Chris Meglio (@chris_meglio) March 19, 2026
The overinflated balls also appeared to have a direct impact on the First Four game between Texas and N.C. State. Those two teams played to a final score of 102-97 during the regular season. The rematch yielded only 134 combined points. Both teams struggled with routine layups and jump shots.
Turnovers and shooting percentages present a stark contrast to the regular season.
The trend of poor handles and underwhelming shooting continued during the first round. Virginia opened the game with three-straight turnovers against Wright State. None of them were forced.
Freshman forward Thijs De Ridder, who played professionally in Belgium and Spain before he began his college basketball career at age 23, referred to the balls used at March Madness as “balloons.”
“That game ball was just a balloon, man.”
— Vince Wolfram (@vincewolfram15) March 20, 2026
Inflated basketballs strike again in the NCAA Tournament. 😳
Virginia’s Thijs De Ridder said it took some getting used to today vs Wright State. https://t.co/Rvaqql7HoE pic.twitter.com/hzkcKOOpjv
The numbers reflect poor performance during the First Round. The mandated use of Wilson EVO basketballs likely has something to do with the numbers.
Teams averaged ~12-14 turnovers per team per game during the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball regular season. Teams averaged closer to ~15-18 turnovers per team per game during the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Shooting percentages reflect a similar trend.
The typical offense shot somewhere between 44-46% from the field during the regular season. Teams are shooting closer to 40-44% during the postseason thus far.
Both teams have to use the same ball so it’s not like the overinflation provides an advantage to either side. It diminishes the overall product and the NCAA refuses to do anything about it.