Yesterday the University of Southern California announced it would offer four-year scholarships to women’s basketball, instead of the one-year renewable scholarship that has been traditional throughout the NCAA. The policy will take effect July 1.

Fresno State and Illinois offer four-year scholarships to all athletes, but most other schools stick to the one-year model.

The four-year option was approved in 2011 by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.

Some basics about athletic scholarships.