Top 40 Defense Against Marquette

[NIT88]

According to Torvik, we were the 40th ranked defense over the weekend. OK, it was for one game, but that is encouraging given that the meat of the schedule is coming up. This is a little different than last year, when we were panicking on this board (me included) when our D dropped to the 40’s temporarily.

Any thoughts on whether this is an outlier, or an encouraging sign that the team may be turning the corner? I am not too knowledgeable on dissecting the metrics, so any analysis may make for good discussion in a slow week.

 

[HooperScooper]

According to Torvik, we were the 40th ranked defense over the weekend. OK, it was for one game, but that is encouraging given that the meat of the schedule is coming up. This is a little different than last year, when we were panicking on this board (me included) when our D dropped to the 40’s temporarily.

Any thoughts on whether this is an outlier, or an encouraging sign that the team may be turning the corner? I am not too knowledgeable on dissecting the metrics, so any analysis may make for good discussion in a slow week.

Last year the defense only dropped to that level when Clingan was out. Once he came back they rolled.

 

[NIT88]

Last year the defense only dropped to that level when Clingan was out. Once he came back they rolled.

Definitely. It’s a different world this year, but of we can maintain a 40-ish defense going forward, we could do some damage in the tourney.

 

[Jaydumo20]

Definitely. It’s a different world this year, but of we can maintain a 40-ish defense going forward, we could do some damage in the tourney.

I admit to being overly optimistic at times, but I think across the yard we underestimate how quickly young players can develop defensively. We are quick to say, during early season games, that certain players are hopeless and then, as they consistently improve (Samson, tarris, AM, Ross and Stew) we call their performances outliers to defend our earlier position. It's human nature, sure, but it doesn't reflect the reality of what can be done within a few months at the D1 level.

 

[7774]

I admit to being overly optimistic at times, but I think across the yard we underestimate how quickly young players can develop defensively. We are quick to say, during early season games, that certain players are hopeless and then, as they consistently improve (Samson, tarris, AM, Ross and Stew) we call their performances outliers to defend our earlier position. It's human nature, sure, but it doesn't reflect the reality of what can be done within a few months at the D1 level.

I agree in the sense that defense is a coordinated effort between all 5 guys, and very slight improvements in that coordination can make a massive difference in how your team looks defensively. There is a LOT of season left between now and the middle of March, so we have time.

I can’t get too excited about the Marquette defensive rating because we fouled a ton and Marquette spent the first half giving a master class on bricking free throws. That game was just such an extreme outlier in many ways, and is in no way a sustainable strategy for consistently beating good teams.

 

[Umami Zen]

I agree in the sense that defense is a coordinated effort between all 5 guys, and very slight improvements in that coordination can make a massive difference in how your team looks defensively. There is a LOT of season left between now and the middle of March, so we have time.

I can’t get too excited about the Marquette defensive rating because we fouled a ton and Marquette spent the first half giving a master class on bricking free throws. That game was just such an extreme outlier in many ways, and is in no way a sustainable strategy for consistently beating good teams.

Without Liam and certain key guys playing banged up- I was excited with a Q1 BE away game W. Hopefully Liam's back on Friday and the other guys are getting closer to 100% healthy. Torvik numbers indicate some incremental progress in an area we need to improve on. Positive trend heading into our next 2 Q1 games.