Question

On december 13th versus the washington wizards, shaquille o'neal scored his season high in points, 40. His 40 points were scored all on free throws and two point baskets. He made a total of 25 shots. How many two points baskets did shaq make? Define variables, write and solve algebraic equations, and state the final answer in a complete sentence.

Answer 1

Answer:

Shaquille made 10 two-point baskets and 15 free throws.

Step-by-step explanation:

To solve this, we need to set up a system of equations in which the first equation is the total number of baskets. Let x equal free throws and y equal two-point baskets.

x + y = 25

The next equation can be for his total number of points. In this one, two-point baskets must be multiplied by 2, since he gets 2 points for each one he makes.

x + 2y = 40

Now we can use elimination to solve. First multiply the first equation by -1 and then add together.

-x - y = -25

x + 2y = 40

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y = 15

Now that we have the value of y, we can solve for x.

x + y = 25

x + 15 = 25

x = 10