In basketball, game-related statistics are the most common measure of performance. However, the literature assessing their reliability is scarce. Purpose: Analyze the number of games required to obtain a good relative and absolute reliability of teams' game-related statistics. Method: A total of 884 games from the 2015-2016 to 2017-2018 seasons of…

Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify the effects of a differential-learning program, embedded in small-sided games, on the creative and tactical behavior of youth soccer players. Forty players from under-13 (U13) and under-15 (U15) were allocated into control and experimental groups and were tested using a randomized pretest to posttest…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to quantify and compare training and competition demands in basketball. Methods: Fifteen semiprofessional male basketball players wore microsensors during physical conditioning training (PCT), games-based training (GBT), and competition to measure absolute and relative (·min[superscript -1]) PlayerLoad™ (PL)…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the kicking performance of young soccer players in the U9 to U20 age groups. Method: Three hundred and sixty-six Brazilian players were evaluated on an official pitch using three-dimensional kinematics to measure (300 Hz) ball velocity (V[subscript ball]), foot velocity (V[subscript foot]),…

Research from several countries has documented a decline in physical activity (PA) levels and in participation in organized sport with increasing age, indicating that organized sport may be of importance to adolescents' cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF). Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine how regular participation in organized and…

Purpose: The requirement for postural stability during the performance of motor skills has been clearly demonstrated in infants, but the necessity for such a postural substrate is not well documented in adults. The present study investigated the role of postural stability during a ballistic ball-kicking task in adults by providing varying degrees…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to quantify the locomotor, heart-rate, and metabolic power characteristics of high-level youth female field hockey matches. Method: Players from the U21 and U17 Canadian women's national teams were monitored during a 4-match test series using Global Positioning System technology. Position (forward,…

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to investigate the individuals' dynamics of perceived control and hedonic tone over time, with respect to the 4 performance states as conceptualized within the multiaction plan (MAP) model. We expected to find idiosyncratic and differentiated trends over time in the scores of perceived control and hedonic…

Purpose: The purpose of the present research was to test how behavioral regulations are mediated between basic psychological needs and psychological well-being and ill-being in a sample of team-sport coaches. Based on self-determination theory, we hypothesized a model where satisfaction and thwarting of the basic psychological needs predicted…

Purpose: Previous discussions of the hot hand belief, wherein athletes believe that they have a greater chance of scoring after 2 or 3 hits (successes) compared with 2 or 3 misses, have focused on whether this is the case within game statistics. Researchers have argued that the perception of the hot hand in random sequences is a bias of the…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if anaerobic performance as measured by the Wingate is decremented in elite female athletes when fraction of inspired oxygen is decreased from 20.9% to 10%. Method: Nine collegiate female soccer players (M[subscript weight] = 63.2 ± 10 kg, M[subscript height] = 164 ± 4.7 cm, M[subscript age] =…

Purpose: The purposes of this study were to: (a) examine the effect of experience and goal constraints (speed, accuracy) on kicking patterns; (b) determine if effective striking mass was independent of ankle velocity at impact; and (c) determine the accuracy of kicks relative to independent factors. Method: Twenty participants were recruited to…

The purpose of the study was to examine the sport-specific performance of wheelchair rugby players with regard to their classification. A group of 30 male athletes from the Polish Wheelchair Rugby League participated in the study. The seven International Wheelchair Rugby Federation classes were collapsed into four groups. Standardized measures of…

In two separate experiments, this study examined changes in motor pattern and performance accuracy when low-level throwers focused on internal variables, external variables, and/or velocity of throw. In Experiment 1 the task goal was to improve the throwing pattern. In Experiment 2 the task goal was to throw as accurately as possible at a target.…

Perceptual-cognitive processes play an important role in open, fast-paced, interceptive sports such as tennis, basketball, and soccer. Visual information processing has been shown to distinguish skilled from less skilled athletes. Research on the perceptual demands of sports performance has raised questions regarding athletes' visual information…