The Task
For day two of Dashboard we, the task was to retrieve NCAA Basketball data from Google BigQuery and import it directly into Power BI for analysis. I found the process straightforward which allowed me to quickly begin exploring the dataset.
Exploring the Data
Have you ever thought to yourself, which bird amongst all bird themed teams soars above the rest? Is a roadrunner lightning fast on the fast break? Can the peacock sink clutch three-pointers, or is it all flair? These were some of the thoughts that came through my head when I began exploring the mascot table within the dataset. The table went surprisingly deep, exploring every mascots taxonomic class, family, genus and species. I decided to look at the taxonomic class of Aves to work out once and for all, which bird themed team is the best.
Creating the Workbook
When creating the workbook, I didn’t encounter many issues when creating the calculations for the visualisation. Thanks to the detailed mascots table, it was easy to group all bird-related teams for analysis. Additionally, the dataset contained detailed game statistics such as three-point conversion rate, turnovers, steals etc. which made it straightforward to compare performance metrics across teams.
Where I found more of a challenge was finding varied chart types to keep the dashboard engaging. When comparing the teams against specific calculations to see how they rank among each other, bar charts are the most effective choice. I considered using alternative visualisation to break up the repetition, but bar charts still made the most sense for comparison. I’m also not typically a fan of tables or matrixes in dashboards, however they turned out to be the best choice for a few sections. As it made it easy to compare side by side comparisons of certain metrics such as games played, won, lost, win percent.
Insights
As it turns out, it appears that the Duck is the strongest bird when it comes to college basketball, at least statistically. It is the winner in nearly every major category, win percent, average points per game, and even home attendance bringing in the largest crowds. However, the Duck also racks up the most flagrant fouls and technical fouls, suggesting an undisciplined style of play. If we were to look at more commonly represented bird teams, the Cardinal has the highest win rate and average points per game, making it a strong contender for the best overall bird team in college basketball.
