In Reply to: yes, and personnel also posted by barrya on January 07, 2026 at 08:42:47
I agree, they’re all saying the right things. But as you point out, the real question is whether they can actually do it. There’s a common misconception that defense is purely about effort and toughness. While heart and hustle matter, they only go so far. Without the necessary lateral quickness or strength, it’s extremely difficult to stay in front of your man or consistently block out stronger opponents. That’s the dilemma.
Looking at this team, we have two skilled players at the four, but neither has the foot speed or physical strength to hold up inside. Complicating matters further is the fact that there are two of them. They don’t complement each other well because they’re most effective in the same areas of the floor. I don’t see that dynamic improving. Ideally, you’d pair them with a true five who could cover some of those deficiencies, but it doesn’t appear we have that option.
I also think Cronin likes the matchup when Tyler is guarded by bigger players, and he’s right, they can't guard him. What I don’t understand, as someone who values defense, is the willingness to sacrifice the other end of the floor. It seems like Cronin believes he can mold Tyler into a Cody Riley-type defender. That’s unrealistic. Cody was a bull. Tyler simply isn’t.
That’s the primary issue. There are others, but they’re secondary. Dent, for example, is allowing too much dribble penetration, largely because he’s gambling for steals. There’s at least a chance that improves. Last night, when Tyler went out, the Bruins locked in defensively for a stretch, but then Freeny left a shooter wide open on back-to-back possessions. It’s unclear whether that was due to slow recovery or poor positioning, but he was consistently closing out late, hand up after the shot was already gone.
If Sky is healthy or Brown(who had a rough game)is able to stay out of foul trouble, Freeny likely isn’t in the rotation.
Cronin seems to believe he can still get consistent, quality defense out of this group. I’m not so sure, the team looks exactly like what its record indicates. We’re 1–6 in Quad 1 and Quad 2 games. Upcoming, Maryland is a Quad 4 matchup and one we should expect to win, but as we’ve already seen, nothing is guaranteed on the road, Michigan struggled at Penn State, that game will be no gimme. Ohio State, meanwhile, will be a Quad 1 game, also away from home, making it another significant challenge. Then it's Purdue.
Things could get ugly! Thank god for women's basketball.