The Art of: Shooting a free throw

I'm not a complete novice at basketball. I played from fifth to eighth grade and while I didn't make every shot (okay, I only made two baskets my entire career), I like to think I have a basketball background, even if it is limited. This weekend I took this "background" and learned how to properly shoot a foul shot with a member of the women's basketball team, Orsi Szecsi. 

I walked onto the court at the A.J. Palumbo Center Saturday morning with jitters. Szecsi was already there warming up and she welcomed the photographer, the videographer and myself with a wave. We all said our hellos and did the introductions, effectively procrastinating from what was sure to be a challenging lesson.

Szecsi, who is third on the women's team in scoring, and second in free throw percentage hitting on more than 76 percent of her attempts, laid out the basics: keep your shooting arm's elbow at a 45 degree angle, place your dominant foot ahead of the other, keep your feet shoulder's width apart, bend your knees and then, while straightening, shoot the ball in one fluid movement. 

She shot and made basket after basket as I attempted to memorize her movement so I could copy it. While she was shooting, I stood to the side and mirrored her. My logic was that if I copied her, maybe I could make at least half of the shots I attempted. I mimicked her as she shot, trying to soak it in and nail the fluidity. 

As I got the pattern down and got set to take my first shot, I took a deep breath taking my spot behind the free throw line. Even though I'm left-handed, more power comes from my right so I set up my body and shot accordingly. I bent my knees and came up attempting to get the ball in the hoop. Miss. Attempt two was worse almost landing in the stands. Number three and still nothing. 

At attempt number four, I took a deep breath, made sure my elbow was at a 45 degree angle, bent my knees and released the ball. Swoosh. Like butter. 

Szecsi came over and gave me a high five with a grin saying, "I must be a good teacher!" Then I resumed shooting. Shot five was off and probably could have injured somebody in the stands if we had been practicing in front of an audience. I kept going, not letting a couple of bad shots throw me off, but nothing was going in. 

I wasn't going to accept making only one basket so I regained my composure and shot, I closed my eyes and heard a swoosh. I had made another basket. I had matched my four-year career total baskets made in a seven-minute span. 

I ended up shooting five for 30, a not so superb .167 percentage from the line. Needless to say, women's coach Suzie McConnell-Serio didn't rush onto the court and ask me to join the team. I also will not be drafted into the WNBA. 

I will take five shots made and consider it a personal gain. At least I improved from the eighth grade to my first year of college.  

I recommend taking these tips to your next friendly game of H-O-R-S-E with your friends. You'll definitely be better and can certainly win some bragging rights. Remember, bend your knees, place your dominant foot a little bit in front of the other, keep your elbow at a 45 degree angle and just shoot the ball. You can't be worse than me.