DePaul University Athletics
Friday, January 3
Providence, R.I.
5:30 P.M. CT
DePaul University
at
Providence
No. 16/17 DePaul Set to Put the Pressure on Providence
1/2/2020 1:55:00 PM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Enters Friday’s road matchup forcing an average of 25.5 turnovers in last six games.
CHICAGO – Coach Doug Bruno and his highly entertaining Blue Demons put their national credibility on the line Friday with their first road test of the BIG EAST Conference season.
DePaul heads into the nationally televised 5:30 p.m. tipoff at Providence on FS2 ranked No. 16 in the Associated Press Top 25, No. 17 in the USA Today/Coaches national poll and No. 10 in the latest NCAA RPI index.
What the Providence partisans in the Alumni Hall stands can expect is a rock-and-roll, fast-forward offense that is putting up 88.5 points a game---third-highest in the country.
This "DePaulball" attack is predicated upon an equal-opportunity system where a roster full of talented shooters freely share the ball and are rewarded with what Bruno describes as "the greenest green light in America" to launch open shots with confidence and without hesitation.
No wonder DePaul (11-2, 1-0 in the BIG EAST) is second in the country in assists, three-pointers, threes per game and three-point attempts.
But this is far from a no-conscience shooting philosophy. Bruno impresses upon his players the stipulation that such offensive privileges must be earned by a commitment to aggressive man-to-man defense and the superior conditioning demanded when deploying constant full-court pressure.
Again, the numbers bear out Bruno's belief in his system. The Blue Demons are fourth in the nation in steals and turnover margin and fifth in turnovers forced.
A more vivid portrait of how this relentless pressure takes its toll both mentally and physically over the course of a 40-minute game---DePaul has forced a total of 153 turnovers in the last six games. That's an average of 25.5 per game.
The team that has done the best job in that span withstanding the withering pressure is none other than consensus No. 1-ranked Connecticut. For all the immense talent and wealth of high school All-Americans dotting the UConn roster, the Huskies still committed 21 turnovers in an 84-74 win over Bruno & Co.
The cumulative effect of this pressure defense helped DePaul turn a 26-point halftime deficit into a four-point game with 7:17 left in the fourth quarter.
The Blue Demons have forced 20 or more turnovers in every game this season with Northwestern faring the best finishing with 20 miscues in a 70-68 loss to DePaul on Dec. 1.
The driving force behind this vaunted press is 6-foot, 1-inch senior Chante Stonewall whose long arms, quickness and natural instincts make her ideal at the point of attack. In addition to her baseline-to-baseline defense, she is regularly assigned to defend the opposing team's best player.
As if that isn't enough, Stonewall also leads the team in scoring at 18.2 points a game and is sixth in the country in steals with 45.
Her classmate and fellow co-captain Kelly Campbell is the other critical cog in Bruno's defensive scheme. She is the coolest head on the court with an intangible ability to be at the right place at the right time.
Campbell also runs the "DePaulball" attack with machine-like efficiency, leading the nation in assist-turnover ratio and No. 6 in total assists. The supremely conditioned 5-10 point guard often defends the opponent's best inside player using her craftiness and gutsy play to contain players five inches taller.
Providence (9-5, 0-2) has just such a player in 6-3 sophomore Mary Baskerville---last year's BIG EAST Freshman of the Year. Baskerville leads the Friars averaging 12.8 points and 8.5 rebounds a game along with a team-high 23 blocked shots.
She heads up a trio of talented sophomores that make the Friars go. Guard Kaela Webb is scoring 11.5 points a game thanks in large part to knocking down 40 three-pointers and tops the team with 24 steals. Backcourt mate Kyra Spiwak contributes 10.6 points per game and is converting a team-high 43 percent of her three-point attempts and 95 percent of her free throws.
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DePaul heads into the nationally televised 5:30 p.m. tipoff at Providence on FS2 ranked No. 16 in the Associated Press Top 25, No. 17 in the USA Today/Coaches national poll and No. 10 in the latest NCAA RPI index.
What the Providence partisans in the Alumni Hall stands can expect is a rock-and-roll, fast-forward offense that is putting up 88.5 points a game---third-highest in the country.
This "DePaulball" attack is predicated upon an equal-opportunity system where a roster full of talented shooters freely share the ball and are rewarded with what Bruno describes as "the greenest green light in America" to launch open shots with confidence and without hesitation.
No wonder DePaul (11-2, 1-0 in the BIG EAST) is second in the country in assists, three-pointers, threes per game and three-point attempts.
But this is far from a no-conscience shooting philosophy. Bruno impresses upon his players the stipulation that such offensive privileges must be earned by a commitment to aggressive man-to-man defense and the superior conditioning demanded when deploying constant full-court pressure.
Again, the numbers bear out Bruno's belief in his system. The Blue Demons are fourth in the nation in steals and turnover margin and fifth in turnovers forced.
A more vivid portrait of how this relentless pressure takes its toll both mentally and physically over the course of a 40-minute game---DePaul has forced a total of 153 turnovers in the last six games. That's an average of 25.5 per game.
The team that has done the best job in that span withstanding the withering pressure is none other than consensus No. 1-ranked Connecticut. For all the immense talent and wealth of high school All-Americans dotting the UConn roster, the Huskies still committed 21 turnovers in an 84-74 win over Bruno & Co.
The cumulative effect of this pressure defense helped DePaul turn a 26-point halftime deficit into a four-point game with 7:17 left in the fourth quarter.
The Blue Demons have forced 20 or more turnovers in every game this season with Northwestern faring the best finishing with 20 miscues in a 70-68 loss to DePaul on Dec. 1.
The driving force behind this vaunted press is 6-foot, 1-inch senior Chante Stonewall whose long arms, quickness and natural instincts make her ideal at the point of attack. In addition to her baseline-to-baseline defense, she is regularly assigned to defend the opposing team's best player.
As if that isn't enough, Stonewall also leads the team in scoring at 18.2 points a game and is sixth in the country in steals with 45.
Her classmate and fellow co-captain Kelly Campbell is the other critical cog in Bruno's defensive scheme. She is the coolest head on the court with an intangible ability to be at the right place at the right time.
Campbell also runs the "DePaulball" attack with machine-like efficiency, leading the nation in assist-turnover ratio and No. 6 in total assists. The supremely conditioned 5-10 point guard often defends the opponent's best inside player using her craftiness and gutsy play to contain players five inches taller.
Providence (9-5, 0-2) has just such a player in 6-3 sophomore Mary Baskerville---last year's BIG EAST Freshman of the Year. Baskerville leads the Friars averaging 12.8 points and 8.5 rebounds a game along with a team-high 23 blocked shots.
She heads up a trio of talented sophomores that make the Friars go. Guard Kaela Webb is scoring 11.5 points a game thanks in large part to knocking down 40 three-pointers and tops the team with 24 steals. Backcourt mate Kyra Spiwak contributes 10.6 points per game and is converting a team-high 43 percent of her three-point attempts and 95 percent of her free throws.
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Players Mentioned
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