SAN DIEGO – Force side!
What?
No, middle!
Huh?
Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM EST
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Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM EST
A look at the game preview for Notre Dame @ Texas Tech on SUN, MAR 20 - 07:10 PM EST. You can count on us for everything you need to know about the 2021 NCAA season. Your source for scores, previews, recaps, box scores, and more from every NCAA college basketball game. The schedule is set, and we're ready for some college basketball.
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Trap on the baseline – one dribble, or no dribbles!
The words were familiar to Adonis Arms, but when he arrived at Texas Tech this year and heard the commands from Red Raiders coach Mark Adams, he didn’t understand the meaning. It was English, yet it sounded French. He initially questioned what he got into, but he reminded himself why he came.
“Coach Adams, what I heard even before I got to Texas Tech was he was the guru of defense,” said Arms, a fifth-year senior who transferred to Tech from Winthrop. “So whatever he was saying had to be right.”
Months later, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Arms and his Red Raiders teammates proved it. They flew around the court Friday at Viejas Arena, anticipating passes from Montana State and moving in a flash. Montana State, Texas Tech’s 14th-seeded opponent, didn’t hit double digits in points until after the 10-minute mark of the first half and lost 97-62.
“This is the first time I’ve seen my play card all night,” Montana State coach Danny Sprinkle said, chuckling at what he just experienced. “It felt like they were guarding me … that’s the best defensive team in the country for a reason.”
That claim is often the first thing associated with the Red Raiders, who lead the nation in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom. Defense is their identity, so much so that Adams joked about his concern for the record-setting offensive night they had in the NCAA Tournament opener. It’s also not an accident.
After Chris Beard left for Texas, Adams was left with a barren roster. He needed transfers, so when hee hit the portal he was looking for players who wanted to be coached — players who didn’t mind learning a defensive philosophy that isn’t easy to understand immediately.
“It starts right there,” Adams said. “If you have a guy that wants to be coached and coached hard, then you’re a very fortunate coach. I’m blessed and lucky to coach these guys.”
Senior Bryson Williams, a transfer who started at Fresno State and came to Lubbock from Texas-El Paso, said it took a while to learn Adams’ defense. It also took self-improvement, especially from the players who weren’t familiar with it before this season.
“It’s so different from what we were running at our previous institution,” said Williams, a 6-8 senior who scored 20 points against Montana State. “So it took some time, but once we figured it out, and once we jelled on that, it just made it that much easier on the court.”
And tougher on opponents, but for reasons beyond cohesion. Just ask the coach of 11th-seeded Notre Dame, Texas Tech’s opponent in Sunday’s second-round game.
Mike Brey had watched Texas Tech’s defense, but he hadn’t seen it in person, so before his Fighting Irish met Alabama in the first round he took a peek at the Red Raiders.
Montana State guard Xavier Bishop (1) looks to pass against Texas Tech during the first half of a first-round NCAA college basketball tournament game, Friday, March 18, 2022, San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)(Denis Poroy / ASSOCIATED PRESS)
“Woohoo!” Brey said, “do they have some bodies, baby!”
Brey’s talking about the height, length and athleticism the Red Raiders possess. Texas Tech’s rotation, for the most part, is filled with players between 6-6 and 6-8. Brey said Texas Tech’s defense reminded him of Florida State, to whom Notre Dame lost season, but with one difference: In addition to having the “bodies,” as he likes to say, Brey saw a team with discipline, too.
As a coach, Brey said, that’s difficult to create, especially in a world fixated on offense.
“It’s a sales job every day to get them in a stance and guard and rotate,” Brey said of coaching defense. “It’s not natural, and certainly Texas Tech has a formula of doing it.”
Go back to Thursday’s practice, the day before the tournament starts, and the Red Raiders are displaying this formula:
The starting five is on the court, looking directly at Adams, who has the ball in his hands.
“Ready,” he says as the players tap the floor in front of them. “Go!”
Adams passes the ball off, and the Red Raiders spring into action. They follow the ball around the court, sliding in their stances as if there’s a magnetic attraction to it. They’re talking to each other, and though it’s clear they’re on the same page, it’s hard to understand exactly what they’re saying. Almost as if they’re speaking another language.
+++
What?
No, middle!
Huh?
Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM EST
Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM ESTclose
volume_off volume_up
pause
pause
volume_off
-0:59
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share
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Auto (360p)
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Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM EST
A look at the game preview for Notre Dame @ Texas Tech on SUN, MAR 20 - 07:10 PM EST. You can count on us for everything you need to know about the 2021 NCAA season. Your source for scores, previews, recaps, box scores, and more from every NCAA college basketball game. The schedule is set, and we're ready for some college basketball.
Notre Dame @ Texas Tech - CBK Betting Preview Game Betting-preview for March 20, 2022 07:10 PM EST
|
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Trap on the baseline – one dribble, or no dribbles!
The words were familiar to Adonis Arms, but when he arrived at Texas Tech this year and heard the commands from Red Raiders coach Mark Adams, he didn’t understand the meaning. It was English, yet it sounded French. He initially questioned what he got into, but he reminded himself why he came.
“Coach Adams, what I heard even before I got to Texas Tech was he was the guru of defense,” said Arms, a fifth-year senior who transferred to Tech from Winthrop. “So whatever he was saying had to be right.”
Months later, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Arms and his Red Raiders teammates proved it. They flew around the court Friday at Viejas Arena, anticipating passes from Montana State and moving in a flash. Montana State, Texas Tech’s 14th-seeded opponent, didn’t hit double digits in points until after the 10-minute mark of the first half and lost 97-62.
“This is the first time I’ve seen my play card all night,” Montana State coach Danny Sprinkle said, chuckling at what he just experienced. “It felt like they were guarding me … that’s the best defensive team in the country for a reason.”
That claim is often the first thing associated with the Red Raiders, who lead the nation in defensive efficiency, according to KenPom. Defense is their identity, so much so that Adams joked about his concern for the record-setting offensive night they had in the NCAA Tournament opener. It’s also not an accident.
After Chris Beard left for Texas, Adams was left with a barren roster. He needed transfers, so when hee hit the portal he was looking for players who wanted to be coached — players who didn’t mind learning a defensive philosophy that isn’t easy to understand immediately.
“It starts right there,” Adams said. “If you have a guy that wants to be coached and coached hard, then you’re a very fortunate coach. I’m blessed and lucky to coach these guys.”
Senior Bryson Williams, a transfer who started at Fresno State and came to Lubbock from Texas-El Paso, said it took a while to learn Adams’ defense. It also took self-improvement, especially from the players who weren’t familiar with it before this season.
“It’s so different from what we were running at our previous institution,” said Williams, a 6-8 senior who scored 20 points against Montana State. “So it took some time, but once we figured it out, and once we jelled on that, it just made it that much easier on the court.”
And tougher on opponents, but for reasons beyond cohesion. Just ask the coach of 11th-seeded Notre Dame, Texas Tech’s opponent in Sunday’s second-round game.
Mike Brey had watched Texas Tech’s defense, but he hadn’t seen it in person, so before his Fighting Irish met Alabama in the first round he took a peek at the Red Raiders.
“Woohoo!” Brey said, “do they have some bodies, baby!”
Brey’s talking about the height, length and athleticism the Red Raiders possess. Texas Tech’s rotation, for the most part, is filled with players between 6-6 and 6-8. Brey said Texas Tech’s defense reminded him of Florida State, to whom Notre Dame lost season, but with one difference: In addition to having the “bodies,” as he likes to say, Brey saw a team with discipline, too.
As a coach, Brey said, that’s difficult to create, especially in a world fixated on offense.
“It’s a sales job every day to get them in a stance and guard and rotate,” Brey said of coaching defense. “It’s not natural, and certainly Texas Tech has a formula of doing it.”
Go back to Thursday’s practice, the day before the tournament starts, and the Red Raiders are displaying this formula:
The starting five is on the court, looking directly at Adams, who has the ball in his hands.
“Ready,” he says as the players tap the floor in front of them. “Go!”
Adams passes the ball off, and the Red Raiders spring into action. They follow the ball around the court, sliding in their stances as if there’s a magnetic attraction to it. They’re talking to each other, and though it’s clear they’re on the same page, it’s hard to understand exactly what they’re saying. Almost as if they’re speaking another language.
+++
