This study aims to depict two-point and three-point shooting trends and explore their influence on game outcomes in the NBA across 40 consecutive seasons. Therefore, the following game-related statistics were considered: total points per game (PPG), games played (GP), field goals made (FGM), field goal attempts (FGA), field goal percentage (FG%), two-point field goals made (2PM), two-point field goal attempts (2PA), two-point field goal percentage (2P%), three-point field goals made (3PM), three-point field goal attempts (3PA), three-point field goal percentage (3P%), and a three-point field goal to two-point field goal ratio (3P/2P). The fixed-base indexes and inter-decade ANOVAs or Friedman tests were used as the main statistical tools. The number of 3PA significantly increased over time, while the number of 2PA decreased. A significant increase in 3P% was also observed, whereas 2P% remained relatively stable over the analyzed period. This study also revealed a higher number of ball possessions and more points scored per game, especially in the last decade of NBA competition.

This study aimed to investigate an acute effect of foam rolling and tissue flossing of the Triceps Surae muscle on Achilles tendon stiffness, jump height and sprint performance at different time points. The participants were academic athletes (n = 32) aged between 22 and 24 years; randomly allocated into two groups: foam rolling (ROLL) and tissue flossing (FLOSS). The participants were tested at baseline and 5-min, 15-min, 30-min, 45-min, and 60-min after ROLL and FLOSS for Achilles tendon stiffness (AT_stiffeness) at three reference locations: (1) tendon’s origin, (2) ankle joint height and (3) intermuscular septum of the gastronomies muscle; countermovement jump (CMJ); and sprint performance at 15-m (SPRINT_{15 m}). The analysis of stiffness revealed a significant decrease in AT_stiffness from baseline to Post-60 (p ≤ 0.001) for three locations in the FLOSS group (p ≤ 0.001). In FLOSS, a significant increase was observed from Post-15 to Post-60 (all p≤0.001) in CMJ. We found also a significant decrease in SPRINT_{15 m} in FLOSS in all-time points (p ≤ 0.001), however, SPRINT_{15 m} decreased in Post-5 min, Post-15 min, and Post-30 min (p ≤ 0.001 for all) in ROLL. The current study suggested that both groups enhanced performance up to 60 min after the intervention, caused by mitigating excessive stiffness.

This study aimed to compare the agreement of ball speed in throwing and kicking between the Bushnell and the Stalker radar guns. Sixty-four healthy young adults (21.8 ± 3.5 years) performed a total of 320 throws and 320 kicks during the study. Ball speed was measured using both the Bushnell and the Stalker radar guns for each trial. The mean difference in throwing speeds was found to be 1.39 km/h (95% CI: 1.20; 1.59), while the mean difference in kicking speeds was 1.38 km/h (95% CI: 1.20; 1.56). The agreement, assessed through intraclass correlation tests, revealed an excellent level of consistency for both ball speeds in throwing (ICC: 0.989 [95% CI: 0.986; 0.991]) and kicking (ICC: 0.986 [95% CI: 0.983; 0.989]). An analysis of variance showed significant differences for both throwing (p < 0.001; d = 0.799) and kicking (p < 0.001; d = 0.851), accompanied by a percentage difference of 2.17% in throwing and 1.91% in kicking. In conclusion, this study suggests that the correlation between both radar guns is excellent. However, Bushnell consistently underestimates the ball speeds of throws and kicks, with differences that are statistically significant and practically relevant. Despite this, the high correlation between the devices indicates that practitioners can use either device, provided they adjust normative values accordingly.

Background: The study aimed to evaluate the effects of ischemia used during the rest periods between successive sets on maximal number of performed repetitions, time under tension and bar velocity during the bench press exercise. Methods and materials: Thirteen healthy resistance trained men volunteered for the study (age = 28.5 ± 7.1 years; body mass = 87.2 ± 8.6 kg; bench press 1RM = 143.1 ± 20.7 kg; training experience = 11.0 ± 6.9 years). In experimental protocol the subjects performed 5 sets of bench press exercise at 70%1RM with maximal number of repetitions in each and with 5 minutes rest periods between each set. During the ischemia condition occlusion with 80% arterial occlusion pressure (AOP) was applied using a 10 cm wide cuff, before the first set of the bench press exercise and during all rest periods between sets (for 4.5 minute). During the control condition no ischemia was applied. Results: The two-way repeated measures ANOVA showed a statistically significant interaction effect for time under tension (p = 0.022; η² = 0.20). However, the results did not show a statistically significant interaction effect for peak bar velocity (p = 0.28; η² = 0.10) mean bar velocity (p = 0.38; η² = 0.08), and for number of performed repetitions (p = 0.28; η² = 0.09). The post hoc analysis for interaction showed significantly shorter time under tension for ischemia condition compared to control in set 1 (p < 0.01). The post hoc analysis for main effect of condition revealed that time under tension was significantly shorter for ischemia compared to control condition (p = 0.04). Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that ischemia intra-conditioning does not increase strength-endurance performance as well as bar velocity during bench press exercise performed to muscle failure.

This study aims to explore the interplay between locomotor demands and goal differentials to better understand their combined influence on overall success. Spanning three competitive seasons within the male Turkish Super League, this study analyzed all participating teams across 124 matches. Locomotor demands, including total distance (m) covered (TD), distances covered (m) at different speed thresholds (0.21–2.0 m/s; 2.01–4.0 m/s; 4.01–5.5 m/s; and 5.5–7.7 m/s), and the number of accelerations in range of 5.5–7.0 m/s (n), were quantified using an optical tracking system. Subsequently, regression models were employed to predict the total points earned by all teams over the three seasons. The logistic regression model, tailored to predict team categorization as high-points earners (HPE) or low-points earners (LPE) based on locomotor variables, exhibited a mean accuracy of 74%. Notably, total distance covered, running speed intervals between 4.4 and 5.5 m/s, and the number of accelerations in range of 5.5–7.0 m/s emerged as significant predictors of team success. Our findings highlight the pivotal role of running speed (4.01–5.5 m/s), number of accelerations, and total distance in predicting success for high-performing teams. Coaches can leverage these insights to refine training programs, thereby optimizing team performance, and fostering success in competitive environments.

Aim: This study tested the effects of two training programs (one program based on extreme sided-games of 1v1 vs. one program based on the medium-sided game of 5v5) on the physical fitness adaptations of youth soccer players. In specific, it was analyzed the effects of the training programs on the 5–0–5 change-of-direction time (5–0–5 time), countermovement jump (CMJ), and final velocity in the 30–15 Intermittent Fitness test (VIFT).Methods: This study followed a randomized parallel study design. Twenty male regional-level soccer players (age: 17.0 ± 0.3 years old) were randomly assigned to two groups: (1) the 1v1 format; and (2) the 5v5 format. The training intervention lasted four weeks. The week before (baseline) and the week after the intervention, the participants were assessed in the 5–0–5 change-of-direction test (measured using timing gates), CMJ (measured by photoelectric cells), and 30–15 Intermittent Fitness test. The training intervention consisted of 8 sessions (2 sessions per week). The 1v1 group performed four repetitions of 30 s in each session, while the 5v5 group performed four repetitions of 4 min.Results: The 5–0–5 time changed − 4.82% (p = 0.004; d = 1.115) for the 1v1 group and − 4.26% (p = 0.004; d = 0.859) for the 5v5 group. CMJ changes occurred both in the 1v1 and 5v5 group and amounted to 1.7% (p = 0.003; d = 0.509) and 1.2% (p = 0.263; d = 0.155) respectively. VIFT changed 2.6% (p = 0.718; d = 0.178) for the 1v1 group and 3.0% (p = 0.593; d = 0.274) for the 5v5 group. The 1v1 group reported significantly lower post-intervention 5–0–5 time than the 5v5 group (− 4.3%;p = 0.048; d = 0.954), although no significant differences in CMJ (3.2%;p = 0.147; d = 0.678) and VIFT (2.5%;p = 0.697; d = 0.177) were revealed.Conclusions: The extreme-sided games meaningfully beneficiated the vertical jump height and change-of-direction performance of youth soccer players. The extreme-sided games seem more beneficial than medium-sided games for improving these physical abilities while showing that four weeks were enough to impact the players significantly.