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Basketball jerseys, by and large, used to be fairly simple affairs. Every now and again, some company would try something drastic – like giving North Carolina Sate singlets – but for the most part, jerseys were pretty tame. The ugliness of a uniform would normally be a product not of experimentation, but a victim of the era’s fashion zeitgeist.
In the past few years, however, we’ve seen companies such as adidas, Nike and Under Armour create jerseys specifically for the NCAA Tournament. They get bold with their designs – sometimes far too bold. School colors become more of an inspiration for these designers, rather than the foundation of the jersey. This can result in some pretty awesome jerseys, but it can also produce jerseys that make you want to gouge your eyes out faster than Oedipus. Let’s take a look at some of the best and the worst, shall we?
OH GOD MY EYES Division
Cincinnati Bearcats – 2013
Adidas designed these for the Bearcats, going, I guess, for some mix of zubaz and camouflage, and instead ending up with, well, vomit. Cincinnati wasn’t the only squad to sport these adidas designs – Baylor, Notre Dame and Kansas were among the other schools that joined in on the “fun” – but these were by far the most atrocious of the bunch.
Kentucky Wildcats – 1996
DENIM. THEY WORE DENIM UNIFORMS.
Marquette Golden Eagles – 1977
Marquette’s designs always draw split opinions, but I think everyone can agree that these “bib” uniforms are just the worst. The absolute freaking worst.
Albany Great Danes – 2014
Congratulations, Albany, you made it to the big dance. Now, please, would you wear something befitting this special occasion. Purple and yellow isn’t the worst combination, if used properly. A great example of how to not use it properly: making one side of your shorts yellow and the other purple.
Wisconsin Badgers/Kansas Jayhawks/Basically Every adidas Team – 2015
More like “Come on, Wisconsin.” Did they start with one color of the shorts, then run out of thread, so they switched to another color? Are they all just sagging really badly, making their underwear show? Is it supposed to be, like, a kilt or something, allowing them to channel William Wallace as they go into battle?