Free throw

In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points from a restricted area on the court (the free throw line; informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), and are generally awarded after a foul on the shooter by the opposing team. Each successful free throw is worth one point.

Description

Free throws can normally be shot at a high percentage by good players. In the NBA, most players make 70–80% of their attempts. The league’s best shooters (such as Steve Nash, Ray Allen, José Calderón, Stephen Curry, Reggie Miller, Kevin Durant, and Dirk Nowitzki) can make roughly 90% of their attempts over a season, while notoriously poor shooters (e.g. Dwight Howard, DeAndre Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Andre Drummond, Ben Wallace, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dennis Rodman) may struggle to make 50% of them. During a foul shot, a player's foot must be completely behind the foul line. If a player lines up with part of his or her foot on the line, a violation is called and the shot doesn't count. Foul shots are worth one point.

Podcasts:

PLAYLIST TIME:

Latest News for: free throws

10 NBA MVPs With The Most Free Throws Per Game Of All Time

The Capital Journal 23 Mar 2025
Winning the MVP award is about dominance and getting to the free-throw line at will is one factor of that ....

Michigan rallies past Texas A&M to earn Sweet 16 berth

Potter Leader-Enterprise 23 Mar 2025
Taylor and Goldin traded a pair of free throws, and Goldin and Tre Donaldson made layups to give Michigan an 81-72 lead with 3.43 left ... Two free throws by Solomon Washington and a driving layup by Zhuric Phelps made it a five-point game.

No. 1 seed Houston holds off Gonzaga’s comeback

The Lewiston Tribune 23 Mar 2025
— LJ Cryer matched a career high with 30 points, including two free throws with 14.2 seconds left, and No ... Houston got the ball to Cryer, who was fouled, and he made both of his free throws to extend the lead.

No. 1 Houston holds off comeback, beats No. 8 Gonzaga to reach Sweet 16

TSN Canada 23 Mar 2025
-- — LJ Cryer matched a career high with 30 points, including two free throws with 14.2 seconds left, and No ... Houston got the ball to Cryer, who was fouled, and he made both of his free throws to extend the lead.

No. 1 seed Houston holds off Gonzaga comeback, beats No. 8 seed Bulldogs 81-76 to ...

Newsday 23 Mar 2025
— LJ Cryer matched a career high with 30 points, including two free throws with 14.2 seconds left, and No ... Houston got the ball to Cryer, who was fouled, and he made both of his free throws to extend the lead.

Buzzer breakdown: Gonzaga’s frantic finish, LJ Cryer has answers and back-breaking boards

The Spokesman-Review 23 Mar 2025
Ryan Nembhard and Graham Ike made four consecutive free throws and Ike finished an and-one play to cut the deficit to 76-72 with 1 minute, 18 seconds to play ... Cryer’s free throws extended it to 79-76 ...

Ypsilanti Arbor Prep stifles Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest for back-to-back state titles

Michigan Live 23 Mar 2025
Arbor Prep also struggled, making just 11 of 31 from the floor (35.5 percent) and 6 of 14 from the free-throw line (42.9 percent) from the free-throw line ... 4.47 - Northwest takes a 3-2 lead on a free throw by Morgan Griswold.

No. 1 Houston blocks 3-pointer late to hold off No. 8 Gonzaga

Atlantic News Telegraph 23 Mar 2025
Milos Uzan then sank two free throws with 2.1 seconds left to seal the victory ... Nembhard made two free throws and Ike scored five straight points as the Zags cut Houston's lead to 76-72 with 1.18 remaining.

Brilliant Brooks: Bakko's tip-in lifts Kindred to ND Division A state title, capping wild comeback

Grand Forks Herald 23 Mar 2025
Trailing 58-56, Jakob Starcevic stepped to the free throw line with 6.1 seconds left and sank the first of two free throw attempts to pull the Vikings within one.

March Madness: Texas A\u0026M fans react to NCAA Tournament loss against Michigan

Austin American-Statesman 23 Mar 2025
and stronger free throw shooting between the two teams. Gayle had a game-high 26 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field and 8-for-8 shooting from the free throw line ... Here is what they said..

Wisconsin basketball's comeback vs. BYU falls short in second round of March Madness

Herald Times Reporter 23 Mar 2025
Tonje finished with 37 points on 10-for-19 shooting and connected on 14 of 16 free throws ... Wisconsin wasn’t even hitting its free throws ... free throws that came after a BYU technical foul with 1.47 left.

NCAA tournament: Michigan blitzes Texas A&M late, rallies past Aggies into Sweet 16

Yahoo Daily News 23 Mar 2025
The fifth-seeded Wolverines took their first lead of the second half on a pair of free throws from backup guard Roddy Gayle Jr ... gained control of the scoreboard for good with Gayle's free throws.

Houston ends Gonzaga's Sweet 16 streak in men's March Madness

Usatoday 23 Mar 2025
... free throws, but they controlled the offensive glass for second-chance opportunities ... But Cryer, an excellent free throw shooter, made two free throws and the Bulldogs couldn't get a final shot off.

Drake basketball falls to Texas Tech in March Madness, eliminated in NCAA second round

Des Moines Register 23 Mar 2025
The Red Raiders responded with six straight points, then added a seven-point streak after Cam Manyawu sank two free throws ... Elijah Hawkins hit all four of the ensuing free throws and extended the Red Raiders’ lead to nine points.

Gonzaga’s late rally comes up short in 81-76 loss to No. 1-seeded Houston

The Spokesman-Review 23 Mar 2025
... before Houston’s Mylik Wilson hit 1 of 2 free throws ... Ike made a pair of free throws, GU’s pressure defense forced a turnover and Khalif Battle added two free throws to cut Houston’s lead to 77-76.
×