When I was in high school, my basketball team almost always performed better at home. While that probably isn’t uncommon, there was one major factor that contributed to our improved play: Our opponents had a lot of trouble making jump shots in our gym.
No, our defensive effort wasn’t any better at home, and yes, the rims are regulation. More than anything, what flustered unfamiliar shooters was the vast amount of space behind each basket. Instead of a wall, curtain, or bleachers about 20 feet behind each basket, there was an open practice court.
So, advantage to the players whose depth perception wasn’t drastically altered.
I bring this up because Villanova will be playing the Final Four at NRG Stadium in Houston, a football stadium where college teams have historically shot poorly from the three-point line. From Ken Pomeroy last year:
After Friday’s action, there have been 15 college basketball games played in NRG neé Reliant Stadium since it opened in 2002. In those games, the 30 participating teams have made 178 of their 553 3-point attempts for a success rate of 32.2 percent. This could be the result of cataclysmic randomness, but if a team shot 32.2 percent over 30 games, you’d be pretty convinced they weren’t a very good shooting team. A team shooting like that this season would rank 260th in Division-I, and this includes six games using the shorter 3-point line.
This would theoretically help 'Nova, as Oklahoma is statistically more reliant on the three. Not only do they shoot a much higher percentage than 'Nova from beyond the arc, but more of their points also come from three-point range:
| Villanova | Oklahoma | |
| 3P% | 35.4% | 42.8% |
| 3P/TP | 33.4% | 38.9% |
“Normally for us, we’re the three-point shooting team,” Jay Wright said on PTI Tuesday. “Oklahoma is a better three-point shooting team than us, so for once, this might work out.”
It’s a small sample, and even if NRG is an objectively tough place to shoot, the idea that domes consistently cause worse shooting is largely a myth. Plus, the basket looks as big as the ocean to Buddy Hield wherever the All-American is shooting right now.
Saturday’s game could very well come down to one possession. It will be hard to know for sure if the dome plays a factor, but 'Nova could use any little edge it could get.
Follow Rich on Twitter: @rich_hofmann