BLOG 10: Defense looks a little better for Bulldogs against Calvin

By Sandy Gholston

Ferris State’s Austin Randel goes up for a shot in the paint against Calvin College during an exhibition contest on Tuesday (Photo/Sandy Gholston)

BIG RAPIDS – Ferris State University’s defense struggled throughout the evening in the Bulldogs’ Oct. 30 home exhibition contest against Cornerstone.

In that tightly-contested 74-73 exhibition win, Ferris was whistled for a staggering 32 fouls while the Golden Eagles were called for 18 for a game total of 50. In other words, it was hardly a college basketball classic – from either team’s perspective (although Ferris was happy to get the win in the end).

Less than two weeks later, against Calvin, the Bulldogs were still plagued by fouls, but with more flashes of their defensive potential. Defense is an ongoing process and Ferris is inching closer to improvement. That improvement begins with moving the feet and keeping those hands off the opponent a little more if these first two exhibitions are indicative of how officials are going to call games. When things went well, Ferris’ defense caused Calvin problems during Tuesday’s 80-66 win over the Knights.

Good defensive news for Ferris was a 53-29 rebounding edge. The Bulldogs yanked down 24 offensive rebounds led by six from Lou Williams and five from Justin Keenan.

Although the defense was slightly better (24 fouls committed against Calvin as compared to 32 against Cornerstone), it will have to continue to improve as the Bulldogs look ahead to what will be a very tough season opener on Saturday afternoon in Highland Heights, Ky., against national Division II power Northern Kentucky University

If you have any questions, ideas or comments feel free to contact Sandy Gholston at sgholston2@netzero.com