Prevention of sports injuries in college basketball players: An intervention study based on biomechanics

College basketball is becoming more and more popular, and as a result, more students are participating in the sport. This has led to a progressive rise in sports injuries, which has an impact on both academic performance and quality of life. Basketball players are mostly vulnerable to Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries due to certain movement patterns that raise their risk of damage. This study examines how biomechanical risk factors for ACL injuries in pre-adolescent basketball players are impacted by the JumpStart injury-prevention warm-up routine. The exercise that would lower the Peak Knee Valgus Moment (PKVM), a major risk factor for ACL injuries, was hypothesized. Further kinematic and biomechanical parameters were investigated. A total of sixty-two male and female basketball players were randomized and recruited into two divisions: the experimental group (EG) (n = 31) then the control group (CG) (n = 31). While the CG continued with their standard warm-up protocol, the experimental group took part in fifteen in-season JumpStart sessions. Motion capture data from pre- and post-season basketball-specific activities, such as jump landings, single-leg jumpers, and cutting movements, were gathered. SCONE simulator biomechanical modeling system was used to determine joint angles and moments in the lower extremities. Pre- and post-season data within groups were contrasted using paired t-tests, and the control and experimental groups were contrasted using independent t-tests. To assess the interaction effects among the EG and CG, an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was also achieved. The EG’s PKVM during jump landings was considerably lower (p < 0.01) than that of the CG, according to the results. These results show that the JumpStart program is beneficial in lowering the probability of ACL injuries in pre-adolescent basketball players and recommend future improvements to address other risk factors in single-leg and cutting activities.