UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Holy Cross forged its identity under Ralph Willard at the defensive end. Thus far under new head coach Sean Kearney, success there has been slow to come, but lately that seems to be changing, and at a good time.
During Willard’s tenure, the Crusaders were consistently one of, if not the, best defensive teams in the Patriot League. Their numbers on scoring defense ranked high nationally, but that number also reflects the pace of the game as much as a team’s defensive prowess. Still, the Crusaders have held opponents to some good field goal percentage and turnover numbers, although not always as good as the 39 percent opponents shot against them in 2004-05. Opponents also turned the ball over more than 17 times per game that season. Even two seasons ago, when they were 15-14, opponents shot 41 percent from the field against them and turned the ball over nearly 14 times per game, so defense wasn’t why they were barely above .500.
The Crusaders are adjusting to a whole new offensive system, and because it’s faster, chances are the scoring defense numbers won’t match many of those of the Willard era. And while the adjustment to a new offensive style has slowed the team at times, the bigger issue has been on defense, where the numbers haven’t been good. Holy Cross entered Saturday’s game against Central Connecticut allowing opponents to shoot 45 percent from the field, forcing just over 11 turnovers per game.
In light of that, it’s no surprise where the focus has been of late for this team.
“Our main focus the last three weeks in practice has been on defense,” said sophomore guard R.J. Evans, who was playing close to his hometown of Salem. “We’re going to score points. We have a lot of talent on offense, but we have to lock in on defense and get stops.”
With the defensive struggles, wins have been hard to come by. But the tide may be turning. In their prior two games, both tough losses to George Washington and at Stony Brook, the Crusaders held the opposition below 40 percent shooting, which they had done just once all season beforehand. Saturday, they kept it going in a big way, holding Central Connecticut to 29.3 percent from the field in their 70-53 win.
Kearney noted that the Crusaders largely played zone against Stony Brook before going almost entirely man-to-man against Central Connecticut. So not only are the percentages a good sign, with Saturday’s a season low, but their adjustment to a different defense is as well.
For Saturday’s game, Kearney went with a smaller lineup since Central Connecticut wasn’t a big team. He inserted Devin Brown into the lineup and moved Eric Meister to the bench to essentially play with four guards, and admitted the move was more offensive in nature since he felt the Blue Devils would pressure them. While Brown had a solid all-around offensive game in scoring a game-high 19 points, Kearney also noted that, “as it turns out, I think it helped us on the defensive end, too.”
Brown has been an offensive sparkplug of late, giving them good scoring off the bench and especially with long range shooting. He was 7-13 from the field on Saturday and 2-6 from long range, scoring well on some drives and getting a conventional three-point play as well.
The Crusaders aren’t likely to go back to this lineup against a bigger North Carolina State team in their final non-league game, but might find it useful later depending on the matchup. Against another smaller team, this lineup might work, but it’s hardly set in stone just because it worked on Saturday.
Better defense is likely to bring a few more wins since the offense has generally held up well even with the adjustment. Kearney admits he finds himself wishing they could have a game or two back, but all he can do is keep this team moving forward.
“These guys have worked hard and I think they’ve listened to myself and our staff, and they try to buy in and do what we do,” said the first-year head coach. “I have no complaints for this group.”
The Crusaders aren’t going to put up the kind of scoring defense numbers they did in the Willard era playing at a faster pace. But if this team plays the kind of defense they have in the last three games, they can match some of the better defensive numbers those teams put up in terms of opponents field goal percentages. With that should come more wins, meaning they might put up some of the more important numbers of the Willard era.
