Why do basketball players miss shots they’ve made a thousand times before? Neuroscience has an answer

Elite athletes miss plenty of shots during March Madness and the NBA playoffs. Training both brain and body can help even beginners and novices get more net.

By: David Van den Heever, Mississippi State University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: March 26, 2026

Words: 940

Last Updated: 4 months, 1 week ago

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By David Van den Heever, Mississippi State University

Every March Madness it happens. A player steps to the line, takes the shot and misses. And just like that, there goes your perfect bracket.

These are elite players. The player has made that shot thousands of times before. So what went wrong this time?

Research from my lab has found that the difference between making and missing a shot may come down to stability not …

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