Mental Moment-Sink the Shot

Is your free throw percentage up & down?

When the game gets close do you start missing even the simplest shots from the floor?

As the pressure increases do you start playing sloppy?

I was watching my hometown Orangemen play Cal. It was not a very good game. SU was playing their incredible zone defense as well as they ever have but they couldn’t sink a shot to save their lives and that included free throws.

Part of sinking the shot is practicing it on the run, against defenders and taking shot after shot. The other part of sinking the shot is knowing you are going to sink it. This is mental and the most important part of the equation. It takes practice to form confident thoughts around sinking any or all shots.

In the second half of the game SU made 26 of 41 free throws. Although it was a season high for them and the news said its what won the game for them, the news also said its almost what lost the game for them.  The game certainly did hinge on the free throw line since they weren’t sinking much of anything else.

63% isn’t bad but with a mental game plan it could have been higher and they may have started sinking them from the floor. Just saying…:-) A free throw routine is helpful and imagery can take a players shot to the next level.

Happy start to your week!

Dr. Michelle

Photo credit: Erik Drost