Why does the WBB team make defense look easy?

[ouchmyknee]

I watched my first WBB game of the year and they honestly made playing defense look easy. There was absolutely no confusion on switching, there was always a hand or arm in the passing lanes, and the girls moved so well laterally always in a defensive posture. They also commanded the paint and didn't let anyone have an easy go at the rim. If our women had players who could hit the three, they would be a force to reckoned with.

So why am I posting this here? Well, because it made me even more disappointed in our guys lack of defense. I knew we were poor defensively all season and our best players were also our worst defenders, but watching the women made me sad. A lot of defense comes down to effort, but even more comes down to coaching. Where our guys look like they have no clue, our women knew exactly where to be. I don't even think we ran the 55 today.

The announcers also pointed out that Syessence Davis came here specifically because CVS was a defensive coach.

 

[WGLTAUD]

Because all of the talent in the country is squeezed into 10 teams.

 

[ScarletteK80]

The "D" today was a thing of beauty. They played as a team, and were a well oiled machine.

 

[Trekology]

Obviously one reason is that CVS puts considerable emphasis on defense. Beyond that, there is effort, basketball IQ, and upperclass leadership. Basketball IQ is knowing when and how to collapse the defense on the ball handler--in a man defense, the defender has to still be between the ball and their primary target. The women do this quite well, the men not so much. For upperclass leadership, you frequently see the older players pointing out to the younger ones who they should be defending and the position they should be in. I didn't really see this with the men this year either.

 

[RUMountie]

The women's team plays awesome defense. Syessence Davis (B1G Defensive Player of the Year) is just an absolute beast.
She just takes the ball away from the opponents and disrupts their offense so much, the men's team has nobody like that. Of course some it is talent but some of it is wanting to play defense. I think that is something you recruit more so than coach. A player has to want to play defense like that. I don't think a coach can make a player have that kind of desire.

 

[dmd78]

Originally posted by WGLTAUD:
Because all of the talent in the country is squeezed into 10 teams.

That was almost true maybe 25 or 30 years ago, but not any more.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

I am guessing culture.

 

[knightfan2000]

Sound fundamentals, heart, desire, quickness, and excellent defensive coaching - this is why the women are so enjoyable to watch.

 

[bac2therac]

because she demands it from them...full effort. its something I have not seen on the mens side since the Wenzel press way back when

 

[PatrickRU92]

Because Stringer recruits some of the top athletes in womens bball.

 

[RUMike410]

Originally posted by bac2therac:
because she demands it from them...full effort. its something I have not seen on the mens side since the Wenzel press way back when

+1

 

[RUChoppin]

It's a combination of things, including:
1. Stringer recruits some of the top athletes in the sport (as mentioned above)
2. Stringer demands 100% effort on the defensive end, and will sit you if she doesn't see it (as mentioned above)
3. Stringer is a defensive-minded coach with a strong (and somewhat complicated) scheme

 

[Rutgers25]

I think Waters demanded defense from his teams. We locked down pretty well for most of his years.
Posted from Rivals Mobile

 

[miketd1]

It's coaching.

Watch Mack under Rice vs Mack under Jordan.

Completely different guy, especially on close-outs.

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Originally posted by bac2therac:
because she demands it from them...full effort TRUE. its something I have not seen on the mens side since the Wenzel press way back when WATERS BANNON and RICE had emphasis on D

 

[RU-ROCS]

Stringer's team defense is always a thing of beauty. The offense? No so much!

 

[RUJMM78]

How good a team plays defense also depends on the opponent.The Rutgers women are successful with pressure defense as long as they stay out of foul trouble.Success also depends on how well opponents have inside/outside scoring threats .The womens losses have occurred against teams with balanced scoring.The women are very athletic and talented at most positions which gives them a decided advantage against ,most opponents.

Comparing the men with the women is like apples and oranges.One team has talented players with a Hall of Fame coach that emphasizes defense.In contrast the mens team has MAC level talent which puts undue pressure on the defense because the team is so woeful on offense.