As Pepperdine’s Division I men and women’s basketball team seasons come to an end, the intramural basketball games have just begun.
There are three leagues, 43 teams and 337 participants. All the leagues are co-ed, and games are held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Students lead every aspect of intramural basketball from the referees to the coaches to the creative team names, and — although some may forget the true reason the leagues were created —mostly everyone is out on the court to have fun with others who enjoy playing a common sport.
“The guys here sometimes are too competitive and forget that it is recreation, but there are some good athletes out here,” senior Charles Hsu said.
A senior Amanda Scholl said: “The competition is fierce. There are always other teams that can beat you.”
Many of the senior players are seasoned intramural basketball veterans who signed up their freshman year and continue to go back for more.
“Playing is a lot of fun,” senior Reyn Oyadomori said. “My favorite moment is of me laughing on the ground.”
However, there are other players, such as junior Kayla Brown, who have never played basketball before.
“It’s great because everyone is in the same playing level for the most part,” Brown said.
Each player has his or her own reasons for signing up. Some simply miss playing their favorite sport.
“I played basketball all through high school,” Scholl said. “When I got to college I felt like a piece of me was missing. It’s fun getting to play basketball practically all of second semester.”
Others play as a means of channeling their inner pro-athlete.
“I play to emulate some of my favorite athletes,” Hsu said, “such as Sun Yue, who used to be a Laker, Yi Jianlan and even Jeremy Lin.”
For whatever reason students sign-up, about 10 percent of Pepperdine is participating in this spring intramural sport every year, with some taking it more seriously than others.
“I practice before every game at the basketball class I’m in,” Hsu said. “And I also practice at the local park. I play with younger kids so I think it helps me boost my confidence more.”
