When an opposing player shoots a free throw, many fans think they can create a distraction that will make a difference in whether or not the shot is made. In Marquette’s game against Oakland Saturday, the Golden Eagles went an impressive 26-of-32 from the free throw line and outscored the Golden Grizzlies by 15 from the stripe.
Junior guard Angel Robinson said when she’s at the line that fans are simply wasting their energy with any attempt to distract her. In fact, it actually makes her more confident.
“If fans are screaming at me like, ‘oh you suck,’ or something like that, that just motivates me and I’m going to knock it down,” Robinson said. “I’m not even thinking about anything else anymore.”
Robinson went 2-of-2 from the free throw line Saturday against Oakland, adding to her record-breaking triple-double performance.
Sophomore forward Jessica Pachko said a player has to expect for fans to be obnoxious while opposing players are at the line.
“You have to be ready for all that stuff,” Pachko said about fans heckling players at the line. “Sometimes it’s funny, but you can’t let it affect you.”
Besides not letting external factors affect players at the line, Pachko said it’s important to remember how many free throws you’ve shot.
Pachko scored 23 points against Oakland and knocked down 13 of her 16 free throws in the game. Oakland as a team attempted just 14 free throws, converting 11.
“It’s the same exact shot every single time: you don’t move, the line doesn’t move, the basket doesn’t move,” Pachko said. “You need to know you’ve shot that shot so many times in practice that you’re comfortable with it. It’s a straight shot.”
Robinson said success at the line comes when players take their time and believe in their abilities. She likes to keep her routine simple: two dribbles and then shoot.
“Just being confident in your shot and stepping up to the line knowing you’re going to knock the shot down,” Robinson said about what it takes to be a good free throw shooter. “You have 10 seconds, you don’t have to rush it so it’s all about your focus.”
Coach Terri Mitchell said in order for her players to be better free throw shooters she recommends they come up with a routine before they shoot so that under any given situation they can perform their best.
“Your routine that you do at practice, that you do on your own, that you shoot, never changes,” Mitchell said, “so that when the atmosphere changes, the arena changes, the crowd changes and there’s pressure that you are so into that zone, that you don’t even think.”
Mitchell said free throws are one aspect of the game that she lets her players fix themselves.
“We don’t overcorrect free throws,” Mitchell said. “Unless we see something that is just blatantly not a good shot then we’re going to let them go and do their own thing.”
She said the goal for the team is to shoot around 75 percent from the free throw line.
“We look at what better teams in the conference do,” Mitchell said, “and then we always set ourselves to be in the top four.”
