Today is the Ides of March, and this time
something bigger than Caesar has been killed.

Like a prior post about the 3pt shot, the topic is college basketball, but specifically  “March Madness,” the NCAA Tournament. Today should have featured the selection of 68 teams to compete for the championship.

The Sunday “Selection Show,” with its reveal of the tournament bracket, tips off three upcoming weekends of action, glory, surprises, reflection, deflections, perfection, and escape. For some (me) it is bigger than Olympics, World Cup, World Series, Kentucky Derby, Super Bowl, Christmas, birthdays, New Years’ Eve, you-name-it! Yes, even Hamilton Musical.

Maybe killing March Madness
isn’t “bigger than Caesar”
but today I lament…
the cancellation that brought March Sadness. Continue reading March Sadness 2020 →

I’m leaping off my usual topics of travel, books, and occasionally movies or stage shows to something that has been a passion since the 1970s: college basketball, particularly the “March Madness” of the NCAA Tournament.

Today I’m analyzing the 3-point shot. Here’s a history lesson for that shooting distance (feet and inches) during the existence of the three-point shot in the men’s game:

2007-08: thru that season, the 3pt line was 19', 9"
2008-09: the line was moved back to 20', 9"
2019-20: the line was moved back to 22', 1 3/4", the International distance

It seems there has been no drop-off with this season’s longer line. Things are not always as they seem, eh? Analysis makes those “things” clearer. I’ll get to the data in a moment. Continue reading ‘Leap’ into March, 3Pt Shot 2020 →