25 Recent Jaw-Dropping Sports Stats
Statistics will always be a major part of sports. The numbers give us our measuring sticks for greatness and epic failure. As sports evolve, the perspective on the stats change, and what once seemed impossible can become a reality.
Over the past year, we've seen several eye-popping statistics. It's almost impossible to make note of all of them, but this slideshow shines a light on 25 of the most recent amazing stats. We'll define recent as any stat affected in the past 12 months.
You can't talk amazing statistics in sports these days without the conversation moving to Golden State Warriors superstar and reigning NBA MVP, Stephen Curry.
The sharpshooting phenom leads off the list.
Steph Curry's 382 Three-Point Baskets in 75 Games This Season
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Curry set the NBA record for three-pointers made during the 2014-15 season with 286. He has a legit shot at beating his own record by more than 100 three pointers this year. Through April 5, Curry had already sunk 382 threes, and he missed three games.
He needs just four more to get to 386. Considering he's averaging 5.1 made threes per contest and the Warriors have four more games remaining on their schedules, we should be asking if Curry will reach 400.
If he continues to drain threes at his current pace, he should end the season with around 403.
To put that into proper perspective, the Milwaukee Bucks have made just 412 threes collectively. Because Curry makes just under 46 percent of his shots from long range, can there be any doubt that he's the greatest three-point shooter of all time?
Nope.
Golden State Warriors' 136-24 Record Since Beginning of 2014-15 Season
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The Warriors have a good chance to equal or surpass the single-season wins record set by the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls. Through April 6, the Warriors sat at 69-9.
Their run is even more impressive when you trace it back to last year's championship season. Over the last 159 regular-season games, the Warriors are 136-24.
Only the Bulls from 1995-97 have had a better run over a two-year period. Chicago followed up its 72-win season with a 69-13 campaign the following year.
Its 141-23 record over two seasons is out of the Warriors' reach.
Floyd Mayweather's $300 Million Earnings in 2015
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Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr. has his haters, but there's no questioning the retired boxer's business or boxing acumen. He hung up the gloves with a 49-0 record having earned more than $700 million, per Forbes, in his career.
Almost half of that was collected in 2015 when he made $300 million. The biggest event was his clash with fellow boxing great Manny Pacquiao in May 2015. The fight left many boxing fans feeling empty, but Mayweather's pockets were anything but.
He made a staggering $250 million for his masterful performance over the Filipino legend en route to a unanimous-decision victory. Money closed out the year with a $50 million payday against Andre Berto in September 2015.
Love him or hate him, Mayweather is the undisputed champion of in-ring earning.
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13 NFL Teams Had 4,000 or More Passing Yards in 2015
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We hear all the time that the NFL is a passing league, but until you see the statistics, you don't realize how much and how quickly the game of football has changed.
In 2015, 13 teams had 4,000 or more passing yards. Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints led the pack with a team total of 4,970 yards.
Move back in time just 10 years and you'll see a drastic difference. In 2005, there were only four teams with 4,000 yards through the air. That should explain why running backs are so devalued in the NFL these days.
Ronda Rousey's 2:10 of Dominance
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Before Holly Holm sent Ronda Rousey crashing back down to Earth in November 2015, the latter was trailblazing a path of dominance never before seen in mixed martial arts, or any other combat sport for that matter.
Over the course of four consecutive defenses of her UFC women's bantamweight title, Rousey needed just two minutes and 10 seconds to dispatch Sara McMann (February 2014), Alexis Davis (July 2014), Cat Zingano (Feb 2015) and Bethe Correia (Aug 2015).
Perhaps the most impressive part about this run was that Rousey only used her signature armbar to win one of the bouts. Zingano's mad dash toward Rousey almost forced the champion to put the overzealous challenger in the hold as their fight quickly went to the mat.
No one stays on top forever—except Mayweather. Even he puts that distinction at risk if he comes back for a 50th fight.
Holm's striking and takedown defense totally dismantled Rousey physically and mentally. It's unclear whether she'll ever be the same again. If she isn't, we'll still have one heck of a run to remember when we reminisce about Rousey's prime.
Charlie Furbush's 0 Inherited Runners Allowed to Score in 2015
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There's more than a few good left-handed relief pitchers in the major leagues, but when it comes to shutting down a potential rally, none of them were better than the Seattle Mariners' Charlie Furbush in 2015.
He made a total of 33 appearances. In those games, Furbush inherited 16 runners on base, The 6'5" 29-year-old from South Portland, Maine, didn't allow any of them to score.
That may not sound like a big deal, but it is. When a manager can hand his lefty specialist the ball with runners on base and have him not allow a run for an entire season, it's hard to quantify that player's value.
Wladimir Klitschko's 22-Fight Win Streak
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Wladimir Klitschko might be the most underappreciated athlete in the last 10 years. He dominated a subpar era in the heavyweight division, rarely fought in the United States and his fights were often boring to watch.
That said, he fought and beat every contender in the weight class from 2004 to 2015. He was defeated by Tyson Fury via unanimous decision this past October. The loss snapped Klitschko's 22-fight win streak.
Sure, Mayweather and others have gone unbeaten for longer stretches, but putting together that type of win streak as a heavyweight is especially impressive. No other weight class delivers similar inherent danger of the one-punch KO.
Klitschko repeatedly defeated big, strong fighters who were all looking to do one thing: knock his block off.
Philadelphia 76ers' 28 Wins in 159 Games
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The Philadelphia 76ers are really bad. Since the beginning of the 2014-15 season, the Sixers have won just 28 of 160 games through April 5.
Losing that much cannot be good for the psyche of the players in that locker room. Think about this: Even if you combined the 76ers' win total from the last two seasons into one campaign, the 28 wins would only give them a .341 winning percentage.
That total would still leave them miles away from the postseason. It's going to take a miracle to turn this train wreck around.
Villanova's 71 Percent Shooting from the Field in National Semifinal
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The Villanova Wildcats won the national championship 77-74 on an epic buzzer beater from Kris Jenkins on Monday night against the North Carolina Tar Heels.
On Saturday night, the Wildcats lit the court on fire in their national semifinal matchup with the Oklahoma Sooners. Head coach Jay Wright's team shot a blazing 71.4 percent from the field. That mark set a new record for field-goal percentage in a national semifinal game.
The previous record was 63.3 percent from the 1961 Ohio State Buckeyes.
It's safe to say, the Wildcats' record could stand for a long time. They had five players in double figures, and their 53 second-half points were more than the Sooners' 51 points in the game.
J.J. Watt's 38 Sacks in the Last 2 Seasons
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Since the beginning of the 2014 season, the Houston Texans' J.J. Watt has recorded an astounding 38 sacks. The entire Atlanta Falcons defense has had only 41 sacks in the same span of time.
The only players to have better two-year runs in the sack category are Reggie White with 39 from 1986-87 and Mark Gastineau with 41 from 1983-84.
If you go back to 2012, Watt has accumulated 69 total sacks. He has 74.5 sacks in his five-year career. Watt is just 27 years old, so he has an excellent chance to break Buffalo Bills great Bruce Smith's record for career sacks at 200.
He would need to average 12.5 sacks for the next 10 years to match Smith.
Jake Arrieta's 4 Earned Runs in His Last 95.1 Regular-Season Innings Pitched
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The Chicago Cubs' Jake Arrieta picked up where he left off in the 2015 regular season on Monday night in the team's season opener. Over the last two-plus months of last season, Arrieta allowed just four earned runs in the final 88.1 innings he pitched.
On Monday night on the road against the Los Angeles Angels, Arrieta got his team off to an excellent start by adding seven more scoreless innings to his run.
In leading the Cubs to a 9-0 season-opening victory, the 2015 National League Cy Young Award winner allowed just two hits while walking one and striking out six. He could be on pace for another special season.
Russell Westbrook's 7 Triple-Doubles in March 2016
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The Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook has his critics, but the guy plays with enormous heart, and he can fill a stat sheet as well as any player in the NBA. Westbrook proved that in the month of March.
The All-Star point guard had seven triple-doubles in the month. He leads the NBA in the category with 16. That's three more than the Warriors' Draymond Green.
Westbrook's March was so good, his seven triple-doubles were more than any other player besides Green has had for the entire season. Westbrook won't win the NBA MVP this year, but there's no questioning he's one of the best players in the league.
Oklahoma City Thunder's Minus-3 Fourth-Quarter Performance
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As good as Westbrook has been, he hasn't been able to help the Thunder avoid a number of fourth-quarter collapses. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Thunder are plus-232 in the opening quarter, plus-102 in the second and plus-208 in the third.
That's great, but somehow, OKC is minus-three in the final quarter (the number has changed since the tweet was released).
As a team heading into the postseason with championship aspirations, that type of fourth-quarter performance isn't going to help it accomplish its goals.
The Thunder have blown big leads in the fourth quarter against the Warriors in February and the Clippers in early March. The latter lead was a 22-point advantage.
Obviously, the Thunder haven't lost every fourth quarter, but they can't afford to continue to fall apart at winning time.
LeBron James Has Averaged 20-Plus Points Per Game in Every Season of His Career
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LeBron James has been one of the most consistently awesome performers the NBA has ever seen. With only three games remaining in the Cavs' 2015-16 season, James is averaging 25.2 points per game. Even if he went scoreless in the Cavs' final three contests (virtually impossible), he'd still finish with a scoring average over 23 points per game.
This means LeBron has averaged at least 20 per game in each of his 13 NBA seasons. He's one of only six players in NBA history to average 20 per game in every year of a career that has lasted that long.
Michael Jordan played 15 seasons and averaged at least 20 in all of his campaigns. James and the New York Knicks' Carmelo Anthony both have a shot at equaling that feat in the 2017-18 season, should they both score at least 20 per contest in the 2016-17 season.
101,763 Fans at AT&T Stadium to Watch WrestleMania 32
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Right about now, someone is about to write in the comments section: "The WWE is not a sport."
Well, you're right, it's not, but it is sports entertainment. Because of that, I reserve the right to marvel at one of the promotion's most recent and impressive accomplishments.
On Sunday night at WrestleMania 32 in Dallas, Texas, at AT&T Stadium, the WWE broke its attendance record for the mega-event. Per WWE.com, there were 101,763 in attendance.
That breaks the previous record set at WrestleMania 3 in Pontiac, Michigan, when 93,173 were on hand.
Samaje Perine Bench-Presses 225 Pounds 100 Times
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Samaje Perine is really strong. The Oklahoma Sooners junior running back bench pressed 225 pounds 100 times. That sounds like one of those mythical feats of athleticism we hear about with athletes, but Perine confirmed it, per Brady Vardeman of the OU Daily.
“It was 10 sets of 10,” Perine said. Oh, well then now it makes sense (in my sarcastic voice).
Perine owns the NCAA single-game rushing record with an astounding 427 yards on the ground against the Kansas Jayhawks back in November 2014. Most probably thought that would be the most insane stat Perine would deliver.
The bench-press numbers eclipse that, and mind you, 225 pounds is the weight prospects use at the NFL Scouting Combine. Be on the lookout for a standout performance from Perine at the 2017 event.
Jakeem Grant's 4.1 40-Yard Dash
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Jakeem Grant played his college ball for the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Those who have seen him play know that he is fast.
Perhaps we didn't know just how fast.
Grant wasn't invited to the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine, but the 5'6" draft hopeful showed off his speed at the Red Raiders' pro day.
Some with manual stop watches clocked Grant at a wind-aided 4.1 seconds. A second run at the same event was officially clocked at 4.3 seconds. That would have been good for the second-fastest 40 time at this year's event.
Drew Brees' 8th Season with 30 or More TD Passes
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The Saints didn't have a great season in 2015, but Drew Brees continued his march toward enshrinement in Canton, Ohio. In 2015, Brees threw for 32 touchdown passes. It was the eighth season in his career in which he threw for 30 or more touchdowns.
In fact, he hasn't thrown for fewer than 30 touchdowns since 2008.
Only the recently retired Peyton Manning and Brett Favre have had more seasons with 30 or more TD passes. Both of those surefire Hall of Famers have had nine such seasons.
With Manning and Favre being locks for the Hall of Fame, it leaves no doubt where Brees is heading when his career is over.
2015-16 Spurs' 11.5-Point Differential
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As good as the Golden State Warriors have been, the San Antonio Spurs have nearly matched them in the standings. The Spurs are an impressive 64-12 on the season.
They aren't just beating teams; on many nights, they're blowing them out. That explains the team's hefty 11.5-point differential over opponents. Earlier in the season, the number was even more gaudy, but the Spurs are still on pace to join an exclusive club.
Coming into the 2015-16 NBA season, only seven teams had ever had a point differential of 10 or higher. The Spurs and Warriors are set to take that number up to nine.
Gregg Popovich's 19 Seasons with Winning Percentage of at Least 60 Percent
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The architect for the Spurs' longstanding success is head coach Gregg Popovich. He's in his 19th full season with the team, and the Spurs have had a winning percentage of at least 60 percent in each of those campaigns.
Obviously, that has led to a postseason appearance in each year. In fact, the team has won at least 50 games every year Pop has been on the bench, except the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season when the league only played 50 games.
Pop and the Spurs even won 50 games when another lockout shortened the season to 66 games in 2011-12.
13 Kentucky Wildcats Have Been Lottery Picks Since 2010
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Since 2010, the Kentucky Wildcats college basketball program has produced 13 NBA lottery picks. Three of those players have gone No. 1 overall. In the 2016 NBA draft, the Wildcats could have as many as three new players added to that tally.
Jamal Murray seems like the surest bet. He is leaving Kentucky for the draft and should be a lock for the lottery. Sophomore point guard and SEC Player of the Year Tyler Ulis could also go in the lottery, as could disappointing, but talented freshman big man Skal Labissiere.
The talent factory just keeps churning out NBA talent.
Peyton Manning's 200 Career Wins
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Peyton Manning has had a storybook career that includes two Super Bowl rings, five MVPs and seven first-team All-Pro selections.
To put Manning's career in its simplest terms, he and the Denver Broncos' win in Super Bowl 50 was the future Hall of Famer's 200th career professional victory. That's counting regular season and postseason contests.
The win broke Brett Favre's all-time record of 199 professional wins. There's no better stat to reference when trying to appreciate Manning's greatness.
Daniel Murphy's Strikeout Per 13.13 At-Bats
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Daniel Murphy is now a member of the Washington Nationals, but he helped lead the New York Mets to the World Series in 2015. His insane power display in the postseason was one of the National League playoffs' best stories.
During the regular season, Murphy was the toughest man to strikeout in the major leagues. He fanned just once every 13.13 at bats. That may not sound too noteworthy, but when you put it in historical context, the number is interesting.
Strikeout numbers have climbed significantly over the past 60 years in the majors. For example, in 1956, Don Mueller of the New York Giants was the toughest player to K. He struck out once every 64.71 at-bats.
Take a look at the leaders in this category from 50, 40, 30, 20 and 10 years ago:
- 1966 - Bobby Richardson, New York Yankees, 21.79
- 1976 - Dave Cash, Philadelphia Phillies, 51.23
- 1986 - Bill Buckner, Boston Red Sox, 25.16
- 1996 - Tony Gwynn, San Diego Padres, 26.53
- 2006 - Juan Pierre, Chicago Cubs, 18.39
Murphy's total is the second-lowest K/AB total to lead the league in history.
Andre Drummond's 5.2 Offensive Rebounds Per Game Since 2013
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The Detroit Pistons' Andre Drummond is the premier rebounder in the NBA. He leads the league with 14.9 through April 4. Drummond does about one-third of his damage on the offensive glass. This season, he's averaging 4.9 offensive rebounds per game.
Believe it or not, that's down from his totals in the last two seasons when he accounted for 5.4 and 5.3 of his team's second-chance opportunities in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, respectively.
During this three-year run, Drummond is averaging 5.2 offensive rebounds per game. With this level of production, Drummond is already the best offensive rebounder the NBA has seen since Dennis Rodman.
Nick Young Has Assisted on a Kobe Bryant Basket Just Once in 3-Plus Years
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The Los Angeles Lakers' Nick Young has played with Kobe Bryant since the 2013-14 season, but Young has only assisted on a Kobe Bryant field goal once. To make matters worse, that didn't happen until this season on December 12.
Young and Bryant had played together a total of 451 minutes, but Swaggy P only dished an assist to the Mamba one time. That's pretty remarkable.
Apparently, Young has had his fill of assisting Bryant. Through April 3, he hasn't recorded another dime to the retiring legend.
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