After a strong start to the year during the non-conference portion of the schedule, the beginning of Big Ten play has brought tougher times for Michigan’s defense. Sitting at 24th in the country and fifth in the Big Ten in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency certainly isn’t bad, but it is a step back from the top-10 numbers the Wolverines were putting up earlier in the year, albeit over a smaller sample size.
Michigan assistant coach Mike Boynton Jr., who serves as the Wolverines’ defensive coordinator, knows it too. He’s looking for a return to form for Michigan’s defense and for it to take a step forward as the Wolverines continue deeper into conference play.
“Our defense, just candidly, we haven’t been as disruptive as I would like us to be,” Boynton said Thursday. ” I think teams have been right over one point per possession the last four or five games. We want to be under that as much as possible.”
Michigan has allowed over one point per possession in four of its last five games and .998 points per possession in the fifth against Northwestern.
Friday won’t provide any reprieve for the Wolverines’ defense, however. Going on the road to Purdue poses a significant challenge for any defense, with the Boilermakers boasting the 11th most efficient offense in the country. They’re led by the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year in guard Braden Smith, who has averaged 15 points and 8.9 assists per game in his junior season. Purdue’s offense has been held below a point per possession just three times this season.
“Until I started really studying to prepare for him, I didn’t appreciate how smart he was,” Boynton said. “… For a guy like that, you got to keep him off balance. … If he knows the coverage you’re gonna play, he’s gonna find the open receiver, he’s going to know where to throw the ball. He makes these unbelievable pocket passes and these really tight-window (passes).”
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