With their soccer match tied, Emek and Tara studied the records for their team's next penalty kicker. In recent practice, the kicker had scored 18 of 24 attempts aimed left, 14 of 20 aimed center, and 21 of 28 aimed right. The opposing goalkeeper's record showed that in 40 penalty kicks, the goalkeeper had dived left 18 times, stayed in the center 8 times, and dived right 14 times. Emek calculated the kicker's scoring rates: 75% left, 70% center, and 75% right. Since left and right had equal scoring rates, Tara compared the goalkeeper's behavior. The goalkeeper chose left 45% of the time but right only 35% of the time. Based on those records, they recommended aiming right because it combined one of the kicker's highest scoring rates with the direction the goalkeeper chose less often. The kicker followed their plan and scored. As the team celebrated, Emek and Tara knew the data had helped them make a better-informed decision.




