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Butler Basketball: Keys to success vs. St. John’s in 2019-20

By Lukas Harkins

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 01: Kamar Baldwin #3 and Sean McDermott #22 of the Butler Bulldogs talk to head coach LaVall Jordan during a game against the Providence Friars at Hinkle Fieldhouse on February 1, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Providence defeated Butler 65-61. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 01: Kamar Baldwin #3 and Sean McDermott #22 of the Butler Bulldogs talk to head coach LaVall Jordan during a game against the Providence Friars at Hinkle Fieldhouse on February 1, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Providence defeated Butler 65-61. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 31: Thompson surveys SJU’s defense. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 31: Thompson surveys SJU’s defense. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images) /

1. Control the possession battle.

St. John’s head coach Mike Anderson is well-known for deploying his pressure defensive schemes. That is no secret and the Red Storm quickly bought into his system in Year 1. While the team has not been especially successful with regard to the Big East standings, it is obvious that SJU still plays very hard and forces a ton of turnovers. The Red Storm rank best in the conference in defensive turnover rate forced at 22.0% and they will be looking to harass Butler’s ball-handlers in this one.

Butler committed 24 turnovers against St. John’s earlier in the season with the vast majority of them coming in the second half. It is important to mention, though, that Kamar Baldwin was out with injury for most of those turnovers and the Dawgs have significantly improved against pressure over the past month. Still, SJU will be able to create turnovers – this is just a matter of limiting them.

Taking care of the ball will be Step #1 in Butler’s gameplan against SJU as it will be impossible to do anything offensively without breaking the pressure. In addition to this, though, Butler could build a possession advantage on the glass. The Dawgs have outrebounded many of their opponents this season and that could occur again against the Red Storm.

From a statistical perspective, Butler ranks fourth and third in the conference in offensive and defensive rebounding rates, respectively. St. John’s, on the other hand, holds rankings of just eighth and 10th in those categories. These numbers indicate that the Dawgs could have an advantage on the glass that could pay major dividends.

If the Dawgs are able to win the possession battle while also owning home-court advantage, they will be hard to beat.