One more note on Nova

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Ari did an excellent job analyzing last night’s 12-point loss to Villanova in detail, touching on Penn’s use of zone defense (1-3-1 and 2-3) at the end of his post. ‘Nova coach Jay Wright praised the Quakers' 2-3 zone at the press conference following the game.

“I don’t want to say anything about shots we made or turnovers without saying that you have to give Penn credit. I thought they were really active in their zone,” he said.

Wright even went as far as to compare the Quakers’ defense to Syracuse’s renowned 2-3 zone in “really extending it” and taking away the three-point shot with ball pressure on the perimeter. Villanova was not able to take advantage by pounding the ball inside, he added.

While much of what the ever-positive Wright says needs to be taken with a grain of salt, it appears Allen may be onto something with the zone defense. Players like Tyler Bernardini and Rob Belcore, a great defender who is lacking in lateral quickness, can be better utilized in a zone that emphasizes discipline and collective movement rather than one-on-one defense — especially against the quicker, more athletic teams in the Big 5.

I think part of the reason Allen and Zack Rosen were so upset after the game is that they knew how effective the zone could be but several lapses cost them. Really, though, had Corey Stokes not been on fire from the field — he shot 73 percent (11-for-15) despite being at just over 40 percent for his career — we’d be spending today and the next few weeks discussing another astonishing Penn upset.