Okay, here’s my blog post about tracking the “box score game 5”, written from a personal, practical perspective:
So, I wanted to keep better track of the stats for Game 5. You know, really dig into the numbers. I’m a huge stats nerd, and just watching the game isn’t always enough for me. I need to see the cold, hard data!
First, I grabbed a notebook and pen. Yeah, I’m old school like that. Sometimes, it’s just faster to jot things down by hand. I could’ve used a spreadsheet, but I wanted to feel more… connected to the game, I guess?
Then, I fired up the game. While it played, I was focusing to keep eyes on the game stats.
My Makeshift Stats Sheet
I divided my notebook page into sections. Very basic stuff:
- Points: Obviously, gotta track the score.
- Rebounds: Both offensive and defensive.
- Assists: Who’s dishing out the dimes?
- Steals: Those sneaky defensive plays.
- Blocks: Big swats!
- Turnovers: Gotta keep track of the mistakes.
- Fouls: Who’s playing clean, who’s getting into trouble?
As the game went on, I just made little tally marks in each section. Every time a player did something, tick, another mark. It’s super simple, but it gives you a great visual of how the game is flowing.
I did miss a couple of plays, I will admit it. Sometimes the game is just so fast, it is hard to focus on tracking every tiny detail. And, you know, I wanted to enjoy the game, too! It is no use tracking the game but missing enjoying.
By the end of the game, my notebook page was a beautiful mess of tally marks. Okay, maybe not “beautiful,” but it was my mess, and it told the story of the game. I could see, at a glance, who was dominating, who was struggling, and how the teams compared overall.
After it was all over, I took some time to summarize the numbers. I didn’t do any fancy calculations or anything, but I did look for interesting patterns. Like, did one player have a ton of rebounds but also a lot of turnovers? Did the team with more assists also have more points (usually, yeah!)?
It’s a pretty rough and ready way to track stats, for sure. But for me, it’s more engaging than just reading the final box score online. It makes me feel like I’m part of the game, in a weird, nerdy way. And I can apply this methon on tracking any other games!
