PSU was physical with the ball carriers in terms of impeding movement, reaching in, etc., but they were also more athletic and played with purpose and high energy. Some coaches emphasize effort on D. Fran gives it occasional lip service but it's never been a priority and it shows, especially on the road. Defense travels. Officiating is not the reason we lost the game.
Our limited athleticism particularly hurts us on perimeter D. We don't have the athletic recovery ability to close out aggressively and still recover enough to stay in front of the ball carrier. The result is that the defender is on his heels making it very comfortable for the shooter. When we do close out the result often is a foul or late defensive rotation. Think about it for a second, how many times have we watched a game where the announcers start talking about how one of the opposing players suddenly starts shooting lights out when his history is poor 3-point shooting? It's a recurring theme.
That said, this team has lost a ton of talent over the past three seasons. We've got some solid young guys that will only get better. The big question is whether Fran sticks around, and, if he leaves, will we lose that young core?
