Tweet
Zags finished North Carolina at a very sloppy DE # of 65. They had to get refocused and they sure have. Barely allowing teams to get into the 50s. Their defensive efficiency now ranks #51, just outside the top 50. Safe to say as the season goes on, this number needs to continue to decrease ... the main number to watch is 96.1. That’s the raw number of PPP (points per possession) given up over a series of 100 possessions. Not awful, but certainly not good. Keep churning zags!
-
Qualified for 26 Straight Big Dances
15 Straight Round of 32s
14 Sweet Sixteens (9 Straight)
6 Elite Eights
2017 AND 2021 FINAL FOUR
2 Winningest Players in college basketball history (Karnowski 137, Perkins 134)
2021 Undefeated Regular Season
The Best Point Guard to ever play the game: John Stockton, most assists, most steals. -
hard for many to admit, yet we are just not very good defensively; or maybe I should say 'below average'.Originally posted by gonzagafan62 View Post
we tend to just "run away" from teams, yet can't recall a season I've seen so many missed assignments/breakdowns as this season.
We have had years we didn't have the best efficiency #'s, yet that was mainly due to lacking size/athleticism, not so this year, as we have all the pieces, but just lack consistent execution.
There has been a noticeable bump in effort/hustle on that side of the court, so I've been pleased to see improvement....but its still not fundamentally or technically very good. Certainly not good enough to win the entire Tourney, not yet.
I do think we'll notice a improvement once Tillie, and esp Geno returns. Geno is a terrific defender, although gets overwhelmed due to his 170lb frame, yet communicates well, gets in a stance, quick hands, etc. This only helps the perimeter defense communicate and defend more effectively.
Tillie adds depth and another rim protector once fully healthy. -
Below avarage? Where do the Zags stand in the ranking of D1 teams?Originally posted by Goshzagit View Post
I truly don't know.Not even a smile? What's your problem!Comment
-
It will be interesting to track this. Few has said that because of the non conference slate, they haven't been able to work on defense as much as they had hoped.
I think the team has a chance to really turn a corner with a commitment to getting better on D and the return of Tillie and Crandall. Those two are going to be huge for our overall efficiency. To be honest I don't recall Tillie being an excellent defender, but just having him out there as another big man who can block shots and spell Brandon and Rui (or join them) is going to help.
My hope for the team by the end of the season is to reach top 25 in defensive efficiency. If we can do that with the #1 offense I believe we're national championship contenders. If not, we'll be lucky to get past the sweet sixteen."You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."
-Zach Norvell Jr.Comment
-
Top 9 teams (excluding the Zags) average defensive Kenpom efficiency is 10, + 41 over our #51. Granted, # 1 Offensive efficiency balances things out, but D will have to improve as you note.Originally posted by gonzagafan62 View Post
I guess the question remains, can it improve enough against WCC competition? At this time in 2017 our Kenpom AdjD
was #1, our Adj O #16. That ultimately got us to the championship game. Same point in season for comparison, can #1
O and #51 D get us to the championship game? If not, what does that D number have to get down to to give us a reasonable shot at going as far, or farther again?
CORRECTION! The Kenpom 2017 numbers I referenced were NOT from this time in the season. They were the final numbers after the tournament. Still, how much do we need to close in on our 2017 AdjD to have a shot at going all the way? One poster has said #25. Good enough if AdjO stays around #1?Comment
-
I think it'll be interesting to track this too hockeyzag. Defenses can definitely improve, right? and IF Geno and Tillie can work their way to what they can be and have been before, instead of depth being a concern as it was in those elite game matchups, it could prove to be a true strength, depending. we'll see but count me in as one of the optimists on this, the Charlie Bell effect, etc.
But even without adding players, defenses can improve in the course of the year, rebounding too, and do on good teams. The Zags are a good team. I think it's GREAT that weaknesses were revealed to them early in the season, that the film is there to learn and grow from. Even with the lower level of comp recently, the improvement and better attention to detail has been evident.
Tarkanian had some quote way back when along the lines of, right now our defense sucks but in two weeks it won't because that's all we're going to work on over winter break, something like that.
agree with goshzagit, whatever the correct semantics are to describe the points made, but good points imoComment
-
On Jan 2, 2017 Gonzaga's KenPom AdjD was ranked #13 (and as mentioned, finished at #1 after the NCAA Tournament).
The team's KenPom AdjO was ranked #12 at this point in time and finished at #16Comment
-
With the return of Tillie and Geno, our depth improves greatly, and should allow us to be more aggressive on defense. Depth was a problem during key games, simply because we couldn't automatically sit our starters if they picked up two quick fouls. Instead of two main subs, Filip and Jeremy, our rotation expands to 9.
I'm more concerned about mental fatigue on the court than physical fatigue, I think that contributes to silly fouls and turnovers as the game progresses. Keeping our starters under 30 minutes a game will go a long ways to them being fatigued at the end of games.Comment
-
The past 4 games, the defense has been ferocious. Pressing, hard man, etc. We should be able to go through the WCC and lower the opponents' pgg to the mid to low 60's. Since we really don't play a high end team till the NCAA tournament, I dunno if a drop in ppg against actually matters. But I do like the new defense scheme. I doubt we can keep the intensity up for "40 minutes of hell" but it's better and should get better when the additions return. It'sthe one thing that's been lacking.
I wonder if we'd defend Duke like we did before... We had them down by double figures much of that game. And then neither team could buy a bucket. It's the rematch people are looking for. And it should be the game people should be wanting. I wonder how ready our defense will be for the higher end scoring machines. Either way, we're improved and improving game by game. So this is good. ESPN and most scribes are focused on making this "Duke Juggernaut" champions . "How could it be any other way???"
We need to focus on that.Defense will win out. It always does. Food for thought...Comment
-
It has gotten better. It was in the 80's not too long ago. I know the competition has been easy of late, but there have been noticeable adjustments and improvements, and the defensive eff stats do incorporate SoS. I wouldn't be shocked to see it get under 30 once Tillie and Geno are fully healthy and in the fold.
This team is never going to defend like the 2017 team because they don't have Karno in the middle. But it is a better team offensively than the 2017 group. GU is #1 in the nation by a pretty good distance. I think this is a non-issue right now. As Few has said again and again, when you play the kind of schedule the team just played, it left almost no time for the team to practice and work on themselves. They now finally have that time to work on their weaknesses. Check back in mid-Feb.Comment
-
The defense needs to improve.
What team has played 4 of the top 10 offensives based on Kenpom? Let me help you. GONZAGAComment
-
-
ThanksOriginally posted by sittingon50 View Post
Michigan has played 3 of the top 15 offensives and still is rated #2 defensively...so that could counter my point.Comment
-
Michigan has three notable wins so far against ranked teams. Villanova early, North Carolina, and Purdue. They squeaked by Northwestern 62~60. They definitely pass the eye test but statistically not as impressive as I thought they would be. I think their defensive numbers reflect playing at as slower pace limiting possessions and not playing many high caliber offenses.
Sent from my SM-G960U using TapatalkComment
-
Defensive efficiency.
With two of our key players out of action, It is a hard fact that we had that many fewer fouls to give. Observably, aggressive defense tends to result in more fouls. If those fouls can be spread out a little further we would be less likely to have a problem with key players in foul trouble. ////looking at fouls and defense Illinois had practically all their starting lineup in foul trouble. It wasn't pretty but they gave our guys fits. Our exit last year from the dance was a similar example. The bad guys had at least half a dozen more fouls than the good guys but no one fouled out.Originally posted by White lightning View PostMichigan has three notable wins so far against ranked teams. Villanova early, North Carolina, and Purdue. They squeaked by Northwestern 62~60. They definitely pass the eye test but statistically not as impressive as I thought they would be. I think their defensive numbers reflect playing at as slower pace limiting possessions and not playing many high caliber offenses.
Sent from my SM-G960U using TapatalkComment
Comment