Jimmy Kimmel tries hard to find anyone else who says basketball 'ring,' like Ted Cruz

Jimmy Kimmel mocks Ted Cruz over basketball &#039;hoop&#039; flub — (Image credit: Jimmy Kimmel Live)

Ted Cruz has gotten plenty of grief for calling a basketball hoop a "basketball ring" at a rally in Indiana on Tuesday night, in a pre-rehearsed bit modeled off of a famous movie he claims to love. The late-night comedians piled on Wednesday night, because some gaffes are too perfect to pass up. "Until now I thought Ted Cruz was a senator trying to convince us he could be president," Jimmy Kimmel said. "Now I think he might be an alien trying to convince us he's a human being. I have never personally heard anyone call a basketball hoop a 'ring,' but maybe that's just me," he added. So to complete Cruz's humiliation, Kimmel sent a camera crew out onto the street to ask people what they called the part of the basket the basketball passes through. The Kimmel crew talked to a lot of people. The last woman's reaction is brutal.

Over at The Late Show, Stephen Colbert offered to give Cruz a good ol' coach-to-player pep talk. It's hilariously nonsensical. Watch below. Peter Weber

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.