Granny Basketball Exhibition to Come to Visalia

A Granny Basketball League exhibition has been scheduled for 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 22, the last day of the Visalia Games, at the Anthony Community Center in Visalia.

The game, which will feature members of the California Poppies and the Oakdale Broncos, was arranged by Barb Trammell, coach of the California Poppies, and Holly Ellis, Visalia recreation supervisor.

"I hope that a lot of ladies will see us play and say to themselves, 'I could do that,'" Trammell said. "Because most people, you tell them about the game and they just kind of go, 'Oh, that sounds interesting,' but because they just can't conceive of what a game looks like, being played in three courts and no running and no jumping and that kind of thing.

"They're usually inspired after they see us play, because it's a way easier game than what they're used to seeing in real life," she said.

Granny Basketball is different than the basketball that most people are used to.

"You have to stay in your third of the court," Trammell said. "There's no running and jumping and no physical contact, and you can only dribble twice.

"You always have to keep one foot on the floor when you go in for layups or shots of any kind," she said.

"The other difference is our three-point shots, our 'granny shots,' you know, between your legs and throwing it underhanded towards the basket," she said.

And you can hurry, but you can't run.

"We try to avoid allowing people much running and going too fast because we're old and we forget that we don't have the skills that we used to – balance and that kind of thing," she said.

"We're excited to sponsor the upcoming Granny Basketball exhibition game at the Anthony Community Center," Ellis said. "We're looking forward to seeing what Granny Basketball is all about and can't wait to cheer the players on."

(For more information about the Granny Basketball League, see our article "Granny Basketball League Gains Popularity" at http://www.theGoodLifeSV.com.)