IdaGriz01
Well-known member
Since the Griz "identity" is their defense, I wondered where they ranked on the key defensive stats (compiled by the NCAA through Saturday's games).
The Griz are actually "only" #101 in Scoring Defense (69.2 ppg). Among Big Sky teams, Idaho is #39 (65.8 ppg), and Weber is #81 (68.4 ppg). While the UM rank is nice (recall that those numbers are out of 351 D-I programs), it hardly seemed to convey the strength of the Griz D. (FWIW, the Griz rank #95 in Scoring Offense, 77.6 ppg. PSU is #3 at 89.4 ppg.)
So what stats DO define the Griz D. Here are several:
The Griz rank #15 in Turnovers Forced (16.7 TO per game). [BTW, PSU is #2 (20.7).]
That translated to #26 in Turnover Margin (+3.6).
The Griz are #22 in Steals per Game (8.2).
The Griz are also pretty good in Rebounding Margin ... being #61 at +4.7 per game.
UM is not real high in Blocked Shots ... #128 (3.7 per game).
Those numbers support the "eye test," which tells you that UM's tough switching/helping defense is very good at getting extra possessions via steals and turnovers. (Not exactly sure how they distinguish the two, but I assume a turnover is a bad pass, double-dribble, plain old dropped ball, etc). Of course, a plus Rebounding Margin also provides extra possessions/shots.
The Griz are actually "only" #101 in Scoring Defense (69.2 ppg). Among Big Sky teams, Idaho is #39 (65.8 ppg), and Weber is #81 (68.4 ppg). While the UM rank is nice (recall that those numbers are out of 351 D-I programs), it hardly seemed to convey the strength of the Griz D. (FWIW, the Griz rank #95 in Scoring Offense, 77.6 ppg. PSU is #3 at 89.4 ppg.)
So what stats DO define the Griz D. Here are several:
The Griz rank #15 in Turnovers Forced (16.7 TO per game). [BTW, PSU is #2 (20.7).]
That translated to #26 in Turnover Margin (+3.6).
The Griz are #22 in Steals per Game (8.2).
The Griz are also pretty good in Rebounding Margin ... being #61 at +4.7 per game.
UM is not real high in Blocked Shots ... #128 (3.7 per game).
Those numbers support the "eye test," which tells you that UM's tough switching/helping defense is very good at getting extra possessions via steals and turnovers. (Not exactly sure how they distinguish the two, but I assume a turnover is a bad pass, double-dribble, plain old dropped ball, etc). Of course, a plus Rebounding Margin also provides extra possessions/shots.