Can Winthrop be an elite shot-blocking AND defensive rebounding team?

It’s a beautiful physical action when Winthrop’s Duby Okeke and/or Xavier Cooks sky to block an opponent’s shot.

But their teammates can’t get caught watching.

When either or both of the likely two-best shot-blockers in Winthrop basketball history try to swat an opponent’s shot into Row Z, it leaves the other Eagles out-manned for the ensuing rebound. And they better hustle.

“In a perfect world, the person that’s closest goes and ducks down and blocks out their man,” Winthrop senior Joshua Davenport said earlier this week.

When that doesn’t happen, Winthrop suffers.

Four of Winthrop’s five-worst defensive rebounding performances this season ended in losses. Of the Eagles’ 10-best games cleaning their defensive backboard, nine were wins. Last week provided a microcosm of that stat when the Eagles were pummeled by UNC Asheville on the offensive glass in a double overtime loss, less than 48 hours before Winthrop (20-6, 12-3 Big South) did the same in a victory over Gardner-Webb.

Okeke and Cooks’ shot-blocking knacks are a blessing for Pat Kelsey’s team, and he would never try to change that. But when they try to block an opponent’s shot it is harder for Winthrop to clear its defensive backboard.

As of Thursday afternoon, Winthrop was 31st nationally in blocked shot percentage - per KenPom.com. Of the other 30 top shot-blocking teams in the country, only eight are in the top half nationally in defensive rebounding percentage and almost as many are among the worst in the country for allowing opponents offensive second chances. Eager shot-blockers put stress on their team’s ability to defensive rebound.

“You’ve got to be sound on the back side and you hope that the shot-blocker blocks the shot or takes a charge,” said Kelsey. “Or we need to figure out why they’re in the paint to begin with. But you have to be on it and precise on the back side in terms of cracking down and blocking out the guy who was vacated.”

Virginia, East Tennessee State and Old Dominion are the three teams in the country in the top-30 in blocked shot percentage and top-50 in defensive rebounding percentage. ODU coach Jeff Jones didn’t have a magic answer as to why but thought that the defensive style that his team and Virginia’s play - one very similar to Winthrop - is a big contributor to defensive rebounding success.

“I think the way we play defense allows us to be in good position. Not doing all kinds of crazy rotations and stuff like that,” Jones said. “I think probably Virginia would say the same thing.”

It also helps that both of those teams, and East Tennessee State, have strong and physical players at the guard and small forward positions, who can more than hold their own when the big guys are otherwise occupied. But even in the absence of robust guards, there’s no real mystery for the teams that are good at both facets of the game. As Kelsey said, the other three or four defenders not challenging a shot can’t become astronomers.

“Don’t stare at the stars when it goes up,” he explained.

Winthrop has blocked 14.4 percent of its opponents shots in conference play, best in the league by nearly four full percentage points. But the Eagles are seventh in offensive rebounding percentage allowed, a good clip behind Radford, High Point and UNC Asheville, the top-three in that category.

Winthrop’s players would be well aware of that. The Eagles’ defensive rebounding KenPom numbers are posted every day in their locker room, whether at home or on the road, with the stated goal of grabbing at least 70 percent of the rebounds on their defensive backboard every game.

“Our guys are conscientious of it,” Kelsey said.

Davenport agreed.

“When everybody’s on it, we’re usually pretty high in our grade,” he said. “If we want to win a championship that’s one of the little things.”

This story was originally published February 17, 2017 at 4:39 PM with the headline "Can Winthrop be an elite shot-blocking AND defensive rebounding team?."