The shot seems simple. Standing just 15 feet away from a 10-foot-tall hoop, players try to toss a 9-inch-wide spherical ball weighing approximately 20 ounces through an 18-inch diameter rim.

If the ball comes down at the basket from a steeper angle, the way it does if tossed up in the high arc characteristic of an underhand throw, the margin reappears. “That means there’s a far greater ...

What was once considered a novelty, though, seems to be making a resurgence of sorts in college hoops. Louisville’s Chinanu Onuaku spent most of the summer learning the underhand technique that ...