Panthers implementing high-intensity defense

By Xavier Holloway/Asst. Sports Director

 

 

Associate head coach David Cason holds nothing back in his approach of making sure the team gets the best out of their players on the defensive side of the ball.

“He brings it every day and sets an example for our guys to come out to practice with a lot of energy and intensity,” said the assistant director of basketball operations, Zavier Anderson.

This is all apart of the strategy new head coach Jeremy Ballard has begun to implement in his first season with FIU.

His strategy includes a full-court press defense which will put a significant amount of stress and pressure on the opposing offenses every possession.

Cason is especially hard on his freshman guard Antonio Daye, Jr. who is a local player from Ft. Lauderdale high school.

At practice he was enthusiastically insistent on Daye, Jr. practicing with more speed and urgency.

“Coach is on me heavy every day,” said Daye, Jr. “It’s a good thing to have though because it lets me know that the coaches care about me as a person and a player.”

Last season, the team lost by an average margin of only two points-per-game. A stout defense dedicated to making it tough on the opposing team’s offense could make the difference this season in regards to the Panthers win and loss column.

Every player on the roster is seemingly buying into the coach’s philosophy of lock-down defense and high-intensity practices.

Forward Devon Andrews, who took a year off from playing basketball last season, is looking forward to the challenge of becoming a tenacious defensive player.

“I want to be a defensive player this year, everyone knows I can score the ball,” said Andrews. “I want to be a lockdown defender and shut down the opposing player’s best offensive player.”

Cason, a veteran coach with more than 20 years of collegiate coaching experience, will be one of the catalysts and driving forces behind the team’s sudden appreciation for higher intensity on the defensive side of the ball.

With daunting opponents such as Arkansas, USF, and Middle Tennessee on the schedule, a new defensive approach to the game could be what the Panthers need to make it to the Conference USA tournament this year.

“I’m ecstatic to be playing here,” said guard Marcus Burwell. “I don’t think of nothing short of us. There’s a lot of talent on this team. I want to get to the tournament.”