Template:Talk About Ground Balls

Talk About Ground Balls

Its important to teach your players about how controlling ground balls can win games. The following points are good pieces of information to tell your kids.

• The team that wins more "GB's" is going to get extra possessions and extra chances to score. It is that simple.
• These extra possessions are also likely to be followed by "unsettled situations,"- a 4-on-3 Fast Break or 5-on-4 Slow Break of some kind.
• Transition goals are easier to score because there is almost always an unbalance of players
• Always scoop and and move the ball
• Let's work on calling Ball/Man and not Man/Ball
• Its important to make quick passes down field after winning a ground ball. The concept of "ground ball - pass - pass" gives us a high chance of scoring
• After a ground ball, two guys should look to be adjacent for a quick pass, and someone should be backside pipe

Ground Ball Statistics

• The team with the most possessions has a greater chance of winning the game
• At the College Division 1 level each team gathers approx 30 ground balls per game
• If you win exactly 50% of the ground balls you have a 50% chance of winning the game
• The more ground balls you win the higher percentage your chance of winning the game are
• Most ground balls are won after faceoffs
• Let's say there are 60 ground balls per game. If our team wins 35 and they win 25 we now have a 60% chance of winning the game
• Teams with a -5 ground ball differential win only about 1/4 of their games
• If we win 10 more ground balls per game then our competition we have a 70% chance of winning the game

http://www.laxpower.com/content/mauboussin/stats_analysis.php?page=2