Air ball

Air ball

In basketball, an air ball is any shot that misses the basket completely and does not hit either the net, rim, or backboard. [cite web | title =Air ball | publisher =Merriam-Webster | url =http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/air%20ball | accessdate =2008-07-21 ]

Particularly embarrassing to the shooter, an air ball by an opposing player during a competitive game will usually prompt fans (primarily in the college game) in attendance to chant “Aiiiir ball! Aiir ball!” repeatedly in a continuous drone to humiliate the shooter. At many schools, it is common to restart the chant the next time the shooter touches the ball.

This term was invented by the Cameron Crazies of Duke University. It was first used in 1979 during a game against the North Carolina Tar Heels. [Cite book | author=Brill, Bill | authorlink= | coauthors= | title=100 Seasons of Duke Basketball: A Legacy of Achievement | date= | publisher=Sports Publishing | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=i6eVYHA8IqsC&pg=PA77&dq=air+ball+basketball++Duke+University+Carolina+Tar+Heels&client=firefox-a&sig=ACfU3U2f0tJZ5btL40_oua2X1U8LexhzxQ | isbn=1-58261-130-0 | pages=77]

Perhaps the most famous and fortuitous air ball in history was a desperation shot attempted by N.C. State’s Dereck Whittenburg during the 1983 NCAA Championship Game. Whittenburg’s teammate Lorenzo Charles was positioned under the basket and dunked the ball as time expired, providing the winning margin over the heavily-favored University of Houston team.

The term has spread to ice hockey, where a shot that completely misses the net, post, and goalie is called an air puck.

References

ee also

*Brick (basketball)


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • air ball — n. Basketball a shot that misses the basket, basket rim, and backboard …   English World dictionary

  • Air ball — En baloncesto, un air ball (balón al aire) es cualquier lanzamiento a canasta que ni siquiera toca el aro, tablero ni la red.[1] Es una situación un poco vergonzosa para el lanzador, un balón al aire de un jugador rival durante un partido… …   Wikipedia Español

  • air ball — n. a basketball throw that misses everything, especially the basket. □ Old Fred has become a master with the air ball. The net will never get worn out …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

  • air ball — noun a) A thrown ball that misses the basket, and completely fails to touch the net or supporting hoop. b) (hence) Any ball like object that widely misses its intended target when thrown …   Wiktionary

  • air ball — n. a throw in basketball that entirely misses the net. Air balls all the time. You can t ever make a shot …   English slang

  • air ball — noun Date: 1981 a missed shot in basketball that fails to touch the rim and backboard …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • air ball — Basketball. a missed shot that fails to touch the rim, net, or backboard. * * * …   Universalium

  • air ball — noun Basketball a shot which misses the basket and backboard entirely …   English new terms dictionary

  • air ball — noun : a shot in basketball that misses the rim and backboard * * * Basketball. a missed shot that fails to touch the rim, net, or backboard. * * * n. informal Basketball a shot that misses the backboard, rim, and net entirely * * * noun, pl ⋯… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Air Nomads — is a collective term for a nation of people in the fictional universe of the Nickelodeon animated television series . One of the series , the Air Nomads were wanderers by definition, but had four Air Temples, one at each corner of the globe,… …   Wikipedia

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