The stats page has been updated through Wednesday’s action. The bonus stat is Shot Attempt Difference. It represents the number of additional shots a team gets per 100 possessions as compared to its opponent. It’s essentially a measure of how much of an advantage a team has in the turnover and rebounding departments.

A shot is defined by FGA + .42 x FTA, so possessions spent at the free throw line are also included.

I haven’t had the time to scrutinize the numbers, but the top of the SAD list has a diverse group of teams. Houston’s big advantage in shot attempts comes entirely from the three point line, where they make less than a third of their shots. Hence, their offensive efficiency is very low. Arizona has fewer turnovers than the opposition and has a rebounding advantage, but not as much in either category as Kentucky. Air Force and Virginia Tech are poor rebounding teams, but benefit from the turnover difference. We saw last week that Temple and Illinois were the best in the nation at taking care of the basketball, and not surprisingly, they fare well in this metric also.

Notable teams that shoot fewer shots than their opponents: Kansas, Georgia Tech and Utah.

I’m taking a long weekend, so see you Tuesday.