Texas Tech's defensive transformation happened quickly
BOSTON — One of the most influential voices in Texas Tech's growth into one of the top defensive teams in the country under Chris Beard is a polite, funny coaching veteran with big glasses, named Mark Adams.
Thursday, while the Red Raiders' locker room was open to media, three players snuck up behind him during a television interview and yelled "Stance!," then "Together We Attack!" a phrase that might be familiar to long-time Purdue followers.
"They're well trained," Adams joked.
Seems like it.
The Texas Tech team Purdue will meet in the Sweet 16 Friday night here in Boston has been a stifling squad to play against, a physical and aggressive team that will mix in both zone and press but will mostly roll with man-to-man.
“Our identity is just man-to-man defense," said Adams, who came to Lubbock from Little Rock with Beard. "It’s what we hang our hat on. We work on it just religiously. Our guys take a lot of pride in how we guard.”
The results have spoken for themselves.
Tech has allowed just 64.6 points per game, on average, this season in a pretty high-scoring Big 12. That number's good for 15th nationally. Opponents have shot a paltry 40.2 percent vs. the Red Raiders, good for a 12th-place tie nationally.
KenPom ranks Texas Tech fourth nationally in defensive efficiency.
And the Raiders force an average of 15 turnovers per game, a big number.
“We try to force the issue and not let teams be comfortable," star guard Keenan Evans said.
Texas Tech wasn't a bad defensive team in Year 1 under Beard last season but didn't possess the raw materials it does currently.
“Last year, we wanted to be a defensive team, but we didn’t have the size, length, athleticism or depth," Adams said. "We have all those things this year. We have more guys who can deflect passes, block shots and recover faster than a lot of teams I’ve had in the past, because of our athleticism.”
The roster transformed.
Freshman Jarrett Culver, a 6-foot-5, 190-pound guard, was asked which position he normally guards and couldn't really give a specific answer.
“It’s 1 through 4 mainly," he said. "We switch a lot.”
And that's part of what might set Texas Tech apart, too, its positionless nature defensively.
There's not a player on the roster listed at shorter than 6-foot-3, giving Tech height and a certain interchangeable nature. Eleven Red Raiders stand between 6-3 and 6-5.
“It’s their ability to pressure the basketball, keep it in front of them and cause havoc, and then with their athleticism and length, they make it difficult for you to make that next play," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "They have good shot-blockers, guys who get in passing lanes, just overall versatility. They can put a team out there that looks the same, where everybody’s 6-5 or 6-6 or play more size if they want. ... They can play a couple different ways.”
Texas Tech has been a problem defensively for most everyone it faced this season. The lone Big Ten team it played this season, Northwestern, couldn't crack 50 and lost by 36 back in November.
And it does possess elements that could be a real handful for Purdue.
Length, for one. That characteristic has been a thorn in the Boilermakers' side at times over the years.
“Length and athleticism has been difficult for us in the past, but I don’t know about now,” point guard P.J. Thompson said. “I think we’ve seen everything we can see from defenses since I’ve been in college. They are a really good defensive team, but we’re a really good offensive team, too.
"They can potentially cause issues, but if we do what we’ve done all season and we don’t do anything out of character, I think we’ll be fine.”
Purdue's thrived offensively this season creating the very comfort zones Dakota Mathias said Texas Tech will look to force the Boilermakers out of by pushing them further out on the court and contesting passes. Mathias has seen a Red Raider team, too, that he says has been surprisingly disciplined despite its emphasis on pressure, a difficult balance to strike sometimes, particularly with several freshmen playing important roles.
“You just have to be strong with the ball and make basketball plays," Mathias said. "We can’t be hesitant. We have to cut hard. If you make a soft cut or make a weak pass, they’re going to take it from you.
“When you’re long and athletic like that, you can close the gap on a lot of passing lanes, get a lot of tips, a lot of deflections. A lot of things that aren’t there are there. It’s part of us having to make the right reads and be strong with the ball.”
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