In each of its first two ACC games, N.C. State has allowed an opposing shooting guard to score at least 20 points.
That's a trend Wolfpack coach Mark Gottfried wants to end for Saturday's trip to Wake Forest but the Demon Deacons have two of the best wing scorers in the ACC in Travis McKie (18.0 points per game) and C.J. Harris (17.7). The two rank second and third, respectively, in the league in scoring.
"We have to be better than we've been on the perimeter, or those guys will have big nights," Gottfried said Friday.
Maryland's Terrell Stoglin scored 25 and Georgia Tech's Glen Rice had 22 against the Wolfpack, primarily while being defended by senior C.J. Williams.
Gottfried said he has been Williams' No. 1 fan this season but he has challenged his senior guard.
"It's time to cut to the chase, he has to be better defensively on the perimeter, period," Gottfried said. "For our team to take a step to become better, we have to have a perimeter shut-down guy and we think it's him."
As a team, State has had trouble defending the 3-point line. State ranks No. 312, out of 338 Division I teams, in 3-point field goal defense with opponents making 38.1 percent (114 of 299) of their shots behind the arc. Georgia Tech made 60 percent (9 of 15) of its 3s in Wednesday's 82-71 win over State.
"One area we have to be greatly improved is our perimeter defense, especially from behind the line," Gottfried said.
Harris has made 51.9 percent of his 3-point shots this season for the Deacs, who rank fourth as a team in the ACC in 3-point shooting (36.2 percent).
Comments
The Key To Perimeter Defense
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 21:29 — ab3623Of course the on-guard defender against the 3-point shooter has to do his job, but the key is for ALL the other defenders to make it hard for the shooter (or shooters, vs. Wake) to get the ball; and to not have much time to think, move or shoot if he does get the ball. CJ Williams will do a MUCH better job if the other four are getting after their guys every time, early and often. Is this a mystery to anyone reading this? I hope it's not for the coaches. As Ted Turner said, the problem isn't knowing what to do, it's doing what you know. All five defenders have to play hard while they are on the court. A big part is running the court and getting back quick. Don't scowl and argue with the refs, just transition! Be calm, not mad, but be intense!
Finally!
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 19:07 — Shoreman67I love this article.; it is right on target. I have lamented all season about our terrible perimeter defense; that we have a good team that could be a VERY good team if we could only tighten up the "D". Finally coach MG is pointing it out to his player(s); hopefully they are listening and working on it in practice; maybe it will improve against Wake; we'll have to see. We are last in the league in 3 ptr's allowed; we just can't let that continue. CJW should be a defensive leader out there; he is a Senior. If he is our best perimeter guard, than he had better start showing it this week-end or we are going to go down again.
I hope we don't have to wait.
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 18:55 — preeest1I hope we don't have to wait.
Yep, the Pack's new offense
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 14:54 — ProwlingWoofieYep, the Pack's new offense is exciting and fun to watch, but I can't wait to see the new defense, the one that actually shuts down the opposing teams' hot scorers !
I,for one,
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 19:31 — Shoreman67will be very disappointed if we do not see some improvement this week-end.
PS: We've turned Scott Wood into a two point shooter and now his shots beyond the arc have not been going in; also hope he can regain his touch against Wake.
Wake
Fri, 01/13/2012 - 22:25 — JPDOhioI am expecting a much improved performance on Saturday. I could be wrong, but I think last Wednesday was one of those nights when nothing was going to go right for our guys and nothing wrong for the other guys. I could see it coming when Zo turned it over several times right out of the gate (including that behind the back dribble that went right out of bounds). I don't see a downward trend coming, although I can't blame any Pack fan for thinking otherwise after the past few years.
Regarding perimeter defense, there is no doubt that has been THE major deficiency for the Pack this year. I think it's also the toughest thing to get out of today's player that grows up in an AAU culture that values individual performance on offense and pays lip service to defense. Coach G has done a great job getting better results in every aspect of the game except this one. He clearly is focusing on it now. If he can be as successful getting them to buy in to this as he has in the other areas, the Pack will have turned the corner.
It's gonna be fun! Go Pack,
I agree that Coach MG has done a great job
Sat, 01/14/2012 - 09:28 — Shoreman67thus far and the Pack is much improved over last year. I like what he has done with our offense. I just wish the coaching staff had focused a little more on the defensive end earlier on. We will have to see what will result in the next couple of games. Wake will be a big test. Always enjoy your posts; Take care.