title: Physiological demands of competitive basketball.
abstract: The aim of this study was to assess physiological demands of competitive basketball by measuring oxygen consumption (VO2) and other variables during practice games. Each of 12 players (20.4 +/- 1.1 years) was monitored in a 20-min practice game, which was conducted in the same way as actual games with the presence of referees and coaches. VO2 was measured by a portable system during the game and blood lactate concentration (LA) was measured in brief breaks. Subjects were also videotaped for time-motion analysis. Female and male players demonstrated respective VO2 of 33.4 +/- 4.0 and 36.9 +/- 2.6 mL/kg/min and LA of 3.2 +/- 0.9 and 4.2 +/- 1.3 mmol/L in the practice games (P>0.05). They spent 34.1% of play time running and jumping, 56.8% walking, and 9.0% standing. Pre-obtained VO(2max) was correlated to VO(2) during play (r=0.673) and to percent of duration for running and jumping (r=0.935 and 0.962 for females and males, respectively). This study demonstrated a greater oxygen uptake for competitive basketball than that estimated based on a previous compendium. The correlation between aerobic capacity and activity level suggests the potential benefit of aerobic conditioning in basketball.
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Narazaki
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Berg
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Stergiou
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D001490:Basketball / Q000502:physiology*; D003163:Competitive Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008660:Metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D005082:Physical Exertion / Q000502:physiology; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology; D013996:Time and Motion Studies; D055815:Young Adult