In 1972, Title IX made gender discrimination illegal at schools receiving federal aid. Soon it became a powerful tool to start closing the gap in funding for collegiate sports. But in 2021, a viral video comparing the NCAA Men’s and Women’s basketball tournaments showed that a shocking gulf still exists. As Title IX turns 50, In Their Court tells the story of the rise of a powerhouse sport, and why so many issues of inequity persist—within and beyond women’s basketball.

It’s 1970s America. President Nixon has signed Title IX into law, a bill that’s about to upend the world of women’s rights. In DC, a young, ambitious researcher is figuring out that Title IX has a very special application: women’s sports. In Ruston, Louisiana, a 19-year-old girl is walking up to the door of her university president’s office, pleading for a women’s basketball team. She’ll get one, and the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters will go on to be one of the strongest teams in the country. These are the early years of Title IX, and they’re basically the wild west.

There’s an organization you’ve probably never heard of before: The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. In the 1970s and early 1980s, this organization was the women’s version of the NCAA. It was a one-of-a-kind association, run by women for women, at a time when the NCAA was fighting Title IX in courts. But after losing a series of battles to protect lucrative sports like football, the NCAA realized, if you can’t beat them, stage a financial takeover. It was an all out war and women’s sports has never been the same since.