No defense for not playing it at UW

For all the crowd-pleasing fastbreak dunks, 3-point shots and deft passes thrown during Lorenzo Romar’s tenure as Washington’s men’s basketball coach, it is defense, not offense, that is stressed throughout the season.

It’s what Romar believes will make his team successful each year. It can be a constant. It’s what is expected from players if they hope to see playing time. It’s what his team will be working on when the Huskies officially open practice Friday at Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

Romar, heading into his 10th year as coach of the Huskies, met with the media Tuesday about the season.

He discussed the eclectic mixture of a roster with seven freshmen, the offseason improvements of players such as Terrence Ross – a possible NBA lottery pick – and 7-footer Aziz N’Diaye; the misperception of the attitude of touted recruit Tony Wroten; the health of point guard Abdul Gaddy, who is coming off knee surgery; Romar’s time at Washington, and many other things.

But when asked about his major concern, he didn’t hesitate to bring up defense. And when he spoke about defense and the commitment to playing it, there was an intensity that built in his usually calm voice.

“We have a great potential on the defensive end, but it’s just potential,” he said. “We have to become a stellar defensive team, and they are capable.”

Washington lost its best defender in Justin Holiday, who routinely guarded the opponent’s top scorer. Also gone is Matthew Bryan-Amaning, who could be a defensive presence when focused, and Venoy Overton, who was pest for ballhandlers.

Perhaps one of the more underrated defenders on last year’s team was guard Isaiah Thomas, who made himself into a solid defender in his three seasons.

“That’s a lot to lose on the defensive end, so people have to replace those roles,” Romar said.

One of those people is the ultratalented Ross. Last season as a true freshman, Ross wowed fans and opponents with his myriad offensive skills. But he would get lost defensively, and it cost him playing time.

But a commitment to getting stronger and a year of learning has changed him.

“He has improved as a defender,” Romar said. “Expect Terrence to be one of those guys when they play against a team with another talented player, he’s one of the guys we could use to defend and neutralize him. His feet are quicker; he’s moving to the right spots off the ball. He can also give us a consistent effort across the board.”

Why wasn’t Ross able to do it last season?

“He’d never had to do that before, so it was new to him,” Romar said. “He’s in better condition to be able to do that. It was a new world for him last year. Offensively, he can do what he wants – but defensively he’s taken a big step up. Last year it was tough for him.”

Ross admits he never quite understood it early on.

“It took the whole entire year,” he said. “I’m a lot better at things now. I know what I’m supposed to do.”

But Ross wasn’t the exception. He was the rule.

“Very rarely does a freshman come in ready to handle defense,” Romar said. “Rarely does a freshman come in understanding the level of intensity needed.”

The things players got away with in high school won’t cut it in the Pacific-12 Conference or under Romar’s watchful eye.

You want to play? You can’t take plays off defensively, nearly every freshman has found out.

“The game is much faster, and you have to learn to play hard all the time,” Gaddy said. “You can’t take plays off in college. In high school, you are so good, your coach will let you do what you want. We need to as a team to teach (the freshmen). It takes time. Eventually it will come.”

So Wroten, Hakeem Stewart, Jernard Jarreau, Martin Breuning and Shawn Kemp Jr. will not only be expected to defend, but to defend at a level that most have never done before. Even in the individual workouts, they’ve already understood that defense takes precedence – at least right now.

“Coach Romar wants me to show how good of a defensive player I can be,” Wroten said. “It’s crazy. It’s not like nobody’s seen it, because I haven’t really shown it yet. But I will.”

FASTBREAKS

Romar said that the only freshman certain to redshirt this season will be guard Andrew Andrews. … Romar said he has yet to make a decision on a starting lineup. … Kemp, who weighed about 265 pounds when he signed late with the Huskies, has trimmed down to 251. Meanwhile, spindly 6-10 forward Jarreau went in the other direction , bulking up from 193 pounds to 210. “He’s huge now,” Romar joked. … The schedule is set with the exception of the final two start times late in the season against UCLA and USC, which are listed as “to be announced” because the games will be televised and the time slot hasn’t been decided. All but three games – Georgia State (Nov. 12), Florida Atlantic (Nov. 13) and Houston Baptist (Nov. 25) – will be televised, including the Nov. 4 season-opening exhibition game against Seattle Pacific University.

Ryan Divish: 253-597-8483
ryan.divish@thenewstribune.com
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