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Home Parties Party Ideas DIY Basketball Party Ideas

DIY Basketball Party Ideas

By: Britni Vigil
3/30/2015Updated: 8/24/2022
This post may contain affiliate links. Privacy policy.
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Not all parties have to be about the food. Hopefully these basketball party ideas will show you that a couple of DIY projects and crafts can make a party awesome even if you don’t have a ton of food. 

Four easy DIY basketball party ideas including a DIY tabletop basketball court, soda bottle hoops, and more!

My family loves basketball. In fact, when I put together a book for my dad’s 50th birthday two years ago and asked all of his friends for stories/quotes about him, I would guess that at least half of them are stories from a time when my dad, my brothers, or even I was playing basketball. Since I can remember, it’s always just been a huge part of my life.

And with a brother who played in the NCAA®, another brother who played (and sprained his ankle) the night before his wedding, and a dad who just loves the game – I’m guessing it always will be.

One of my favorite things about basketball is the NCAA® March Madness tournament. I just love how as long as you make it into the tournament, you have a chance. I was watching a sports show the other day and they were talking about how the first two days of the tournament are two of the most exciting days in the year for sports fans.

Regardless of whether or not your favorite team is actually in the tournament, there is just something so fun about watching games go into overtime and seeing an underdog beat the favorite at the last minute. I haven’t been able to watch as many of the games this year as I would have liked since my two-year-old isn’t a huge fan of watching basketball all day, but when I was working full-time, I would just take my laptop into our kitchen and “work” from there while watching the games. Pretty much the two best work days of the year.

So this year since I couldn’t watch as many of the game as I wanted, I decided to put together a simple little party while my father-in-law was in town to enjoy as many of the games as I could. I started it all with this awesome tabletop basketball court I made using wainscoting, Mixwax natural oak stain wipes, and black electrical tape.

Aside from drying time, it really took me all about 15 minutes total to make. All you have to do is stain the wainscoting, slide them together, make your out of bounds and half court lines, then finish it up with your key and free throw line. Instead of adding the circles and three-point line with the electrical tape, I finished the table off with food to create those lines. Kind of fun right?

How cool is this DIY tabletop basketball court, this site has a ton of fun basketball party ideas like this one!

How cool is this DIY tabletop basketball court, this site has a ton of fun basketball party ideas like this one!

Oh and for the hoops, my sweet husband cut cardboard backboards and I hot glued little dip cups with the rims colored orange to them. And then we added it all to our Coke bottle “poles”, leftover from our football party, so that people could dunk their fruits and veggies, or their “freebies.”

How awesome is this basketball party, love the cute Coke bottle basketball hoops with fruit dip for "dunking" your fruit!

Four easy DIY basketball party ideas including a DIY tabletop basketball court, soda bottle hoops, and more!

Four easy DIY basketball party ideas including a DIY tabletop basketball court, soda bottle hoops, and more!

For the three point line on either side of the table, I made Cherry Coke cupcakes and topped some with a cherry buttercream and maraschino cherries and topped the others with a chocolate buttercream and fondant basketballs. I used this recipe for the Cherry Coke cupcakes, and they turned out delicious even if all my toddler wanted to do was eat the cherries and basketballs.

Cherry coke cupcakes topped with a cherry buttercream frosting

Cherry coke cupcakes topped with a cherry buttercream frosting

Cherry coke cupcakes topped with a cherry buttercream frosting

Cherry coke cupcakes topped with a cherry buttercream frosting

Chocolate Coke cupcakes with a chocolate buttercream and fondant basketballs on topChocolate Coke cupcakes with a chocolate buttercream and fondant basketballs on top

Chocolate Coke cupcakes with a chocolate buttercream and fondant basketballs on top

Last but not least, I made slow cooker Coke pulled pork sliders and put them on top of a basketball cake stand (i.e., a deflated basketball topped with a plate) to make the center circle on a basketball court. The pulled pork sliders were so easy to make – just throw pork tenderloin and enough Coke to cover it up in the slow cooker and let it cook on low until nice and tender. Then shred, top with barbecue sauce, and put in slider buns. Easy and delicious!

Coke pulled pork sliders from playpartyplan.com

Coke pulled pork sliders from playpartyplan.com

Coke pulled pork sliders from playpartyplan.com

I picked up a couple of packs of the three different flavors – Coke Zero, Vanilla Coke, and Cherry Coke and used my son’s basketball hoop as a “drink bucket.” I also setup a fun final four blind taste test with my husband and father-in-law, where each flavor of Coke was given a cup color and they had to try each in a series of rounds to get to an ultimate winner, or best flavor. And the ultimate champion? Vanilla Coke!

Four easy DIY basketball party ideas including a DIY tabletop basketball court, soda bottle hoops, and more!

Four easy DIY basketball party ideas including a DIY tabletop basketball court, soda bottle hoops, and more!

March Madness blind taste test!

March Madness blind taste test!

March Madness blind taste test!

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  1. Kim says

    Posted on 1/19 at 7:35 pm

    Love the courts! Do you have the measurements you went with?
    I chose a piece of pre-stained paneling but am not sure how big to cut them. Your scale is great!

    Reply
    • BritniV says

      Posted on 4/14 at 2:11 pm

      I’m so sorry, but I don’t. I did this so long ago and didn’t write down the specifics.

      Reply
  2. Kallee says

    Posted on 4/4 at 9:20 am

    What a fun party! Love the carrot dip basketball goals!

    Reply
  3. Melissa | Persnickety Plates says

    Posted on 4/1 at 3:40 pm

    You are so clever! What a cute theme.

    Reply
  4. Stephanie says

    Posted on 3/31 at 10:10 am

    Super cute ideas and everything looks so tasty!

    Reply
  5. Britney says

    Posted on 3/31 at 8:34 am

    I need to come watch it at your house! This all looks amazing!

    Reply
  6. Becky says

    Posted on 3/31 at 8:29 am

    Love all these ideas but especially the coke bottles as “poles” for dunking!! Super cute!! I need to throw a basketball party now!!

    Reply
  7. Jillian (Food, Folks and Fun) says

    Posted on 3/31 at 2:57 am

    These are some adorable party ideas!

    Reply
  8. Jess says

    Posted on 3/31 at 12:28 am

    What a fun party! I love Cherry Coke myself, but Vanilla is a close second! #Client

    Reply
    • BritniV says

      Posted on 3/31 at 1:28 am

      Thanks Jess, I would’ve chosen Cherry Coke too but had to go with the men’s choice in this one!

      Reply
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