You can recognize it almost immediately. It'll move you to the edge of your seat, and give any basketball aficionado goose bumps.
When senior point guard Kate Walker sets one of DePauw's most efficient offensive plays, you better pay attention. Because for the next 20 seconds, the defense will be on its toes, and their heads will be spinning afterward.
But that's the essence of what the Tigers' offense is - a whirl of organized movement, with the ball constantly moving from player to player.
It was on display in the opening minutes of Saturday's North Coast Athletic Conference tournament title match against Kenyon College. Walker received a toss from a fellow guard at the top of the three point arc, and tore into the lane for an uncontested layup.
The offense is called a three-man weave. And it primarily features the guards moving rapidly around the perimeter, looking for an opening in the lane. The forwards dart in and out of the key, and get out of the way when a guard finds daylight.
Almost every collegiate basketball team in the country runs it, but to execute it relies on excellent guard play, and more often than not, aggressiveness to drive in the lane.
Walker's layup was the first of many for DePauw at the Neal Fieldhouse. Ali Ross, a junior guard, exploited the driving lanes to perfection for a game-high 16 points.
The weave doesn't just yield layups. A guard can dump the ball off into the post from the outside, or when driving in the lane, kick it out for a 3-point attempt.
With the absence of junior forward Alex Gasaway this weekend, the offense favored an attacking brand of the weave, because the usual steady three-point shot was uncommonly questionable.
DePauw entered the weekend as the No. 1 team in Division III in 3-point field goal percentage (40.3). Sophomore sharp-shooter, Savannah Trees, who finished NCAC competition with a conference-leading 47.1 percent, was just 3-12 from beyond the arc in the final two tournament games. Similarly, the No. 2 deep shooter in the conference (43.8), Emma Ondik, was 0-5.
DePauw was 9-32 from 3-point range over the final two games of the NCAC tournament, but shined in points in the paint. The Tigers scored 58 points in the lane, backed by 27 second-chance points off of offensive rebounds.
And that's the beauty of the three-man weave: it's multi-faceted. Who do you guard? Do you clog the lane to eliminate the driving ability of Walker and Ross? They can then just kick it out to a host of others who excel at range.
Forwards junior Alison Stephens and senior Ellie Pearson proved they're a force down low this weekend with a combined 15 offensive boards. They can clean up a miss, and start the offense over again.
That means more confusion for an opposing defense.And more nightmares of the weave for days to come.
- Appelgate is a senior from Kent, Wash. majoring in communication.
