Our Defense

[Fudd]

I have not been following the Flyers as closely this year as I have in years past. I've been very busy taking care of my little kids. And I have not seen many games in real time this year, so I'm not sure if today's game was an anomaly, but I was very impressed with our defense today.

I know that SLU is a terrible offensive team, but I heard the commentators talk about our ability to steal the ball, and I began to pay attention. We have some very active hands on defense, and we harass a teams passing lanes like few other UD teams that I remember. A lot of our players have large wing-spans, and I think this is one factor. Cooke and Mikesell stood out to me defensively today, but we are pretty good across the board, IMO.

	Saint Louis SAINT LOUIS Saint Louis University is a Jesuit, Catholic university ranked among the top research institutions in the nation. The University fosters the intellectual and character development of more than 12,700 students. Founded in 1818, it is the oldest university west of the Mississippi and the second oldest Jesuit university in the United States. Located in St. Louis, MO, and just five minutes from the Gateway Arch, SLU offers 85 undergraduate programs and over 50 graduate study tracks. Over 99% of the SLU faculty hold the highest degree in their respective fields. Fellow member of the A10 Conference. Nickname is the Billikens, but also commonly known as "Sloo", the phonetic pronunciation of the school's initials. Athletic claims to fame include multiple national titles in men's soccer and men's basketball star Larry Hughes.

[San Diego Flyer]

We do have quick hands and feet. We have some pretty good wing spreads and good anticipation. That said, anyone can be beaten one-on-one. It's the help defense by the whole team that sets us apart. Nothing is perfect but we are tough as a unit. Our traps are tenacious, and we deflect and steal a lot of balls, and just are generally disruptive.

I think Arch doesn't want to show his defensive hole cards, so we don't play the "hands" team and trap until the end of close games. Maybe he doesn't want to wear out his horses.
Whatever, some say why don't we press the whole game. I don't think he wants the opponents to adapt to the frantic defense and lose the shock factor which produces panic in the opponent.

With Charles, Kyle, Scoochie, Xeyrius, Darrell, John, Kendall and Ryan (who understands the traps and floor spacing) we are kind of a nightmare to deal with.

[TommyGola]

The Flyers do an excellent job of rotating down and over. Also, they fill the passing lanes very well. Top these off with some quick feet and hands from a whole host of players and you get a very good defense. The only teams we have trouble defending are those with big, athletic front lines. We just don't match up with those teams very well.

[jack72]

UD is #15 in the nation with an average of 8.68 steals per game. Kyle is #27 in the nation and Scoochie is #93.

VCU is #13.

[Bill202]

Originally Posted by jack72 UD is #15 in the nation with an average of 8.68 steals per game. Kyle is #27 in the nation and Scoochie is #93. VCU is #13.

So..... You expect some DEFENSE on Friday?

[jack72]

Originally Posted by Bill202 So..... You expect some DEFENSE on Friday?

Amen. If we can keep our turnovers down to a dozen and take advantage of their overplays on defense to make some layups, we can win this game. It will be very tough at VCU.

[Radar]

Just so JC gets the message!

[CE80]

Originally Posted by Radar Just so JC gets the message!

JC played 20 min yesterday. Seemed like he played more in the first half (mostly at the 2 spot). Didn't seem like he played that much in the 2nd half.

[Piqua Flyer '66]

Our D is awesome!

[ClaytonFlyerFan]

Originally Posted by CE80 JC played 20 min yesterday. Seemed like he played more in the first half (mostly at the 2 spot). Didn't seem like he played that much in the 2nd half.

And JC had the second best +/- on the team yesterday, just a point behind X

Credit to the one and only Figgie for the above information!

[THirt]

I think we actually fell into some bad habits last year because we had the big fella there to clean up missed assignments. Not that we were bad last year, but Steve erased a lot of defensive lapses, either blocking, altering, or just discouraging shots.

After a so-so start defensively, we have really picked it up. It's fun to watch Kyle (and now Darrell!) Davis chase guys around screens and disrupt plays. Baby D beats his man around the screen regularly these days. The bigs are helping and hedging well, the weak side big is rotating well to help, and the other off the ball defenders are also rotating well. Looks like the weak side wing always has a foot in the paint to help, but can rotate back if the pass is made over the top.

But the thing we do best is scrapping at the ball any time someone goes down the lane. Kyle and Scoochie are fantastic at stripping at the ball, Darrell and Charles are also very good, and we do a very very nice job of scrapping at the ball without fouling. Everyone does their job and helps. We are susceptible to guys who are quick and very good one-on-one, but there aren't a lot of those guys in the A10.

In all honesty, our defense could not be much better than it is right now. Top 10 in steal %, top 15 or so in overall defensive efficiency, opponents use more of the shot clock against us than almost anyone... it has been very fun to watch.
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[priceg75]

Was noticing on under the basket inbounds plays, XW was beating his man to the layup spot. That's just good scouting and coaching.