As a heavy favorite against Division II Ferris State, the No. 13 Michigan women’s basketball team didn’t play down to its competition in its first exhibition. A stifling press and high traps crushed the Bulldogs’ offensive momentum and kept them to just 58 points.
The Wolverines didn’t set up their press after their first made basket. But after almost every other make for the rest of the game, three of their guards lingered in the backcourt looking to poke steals, trap or force a 10-second violation. This strategy was extremely effective as Michigan’s high-ball pressure contributed to a whopping 29 turnovers from Ferris State.
“They have to second guess everything they’re doing,” senior forward Alyssa Crockett said. “Whether that’s pushing in transition or the next pass they’re going to make, they constantly are thinking about ‘Is this going to be open?’ because they know the pressure is there.”
In the first instance of the press, sophomore guards Syla Swords and Olivia Olson executed a trap right next to the half-court line. The Bulldogs swung the ball to another guard who was able to negotiate by sophomore guard Brooke Quarles Daniels, but the tone had been set. Ferris State was forced to recoup its offense at the top of the key and couldn’t initiate a play until there was just 15 seconds left on the shot clock. From there, the Wolverines played stout defense and forced a deep, errant three late in the possession.
Finishing the competition with five steals, Daniels was one of the hardest-working Michigan guards all night. Even when she couldn’t pick someone’s pocket, her pressure forced errant passes allowed her teammates to set up traps of their own. In the second quarter, Daniels spearheaded two presses that both resulted in 10-second violations.
“When Brooke is doing all of that, you don’t want to be on the other side of it at all,” Crockett said.
At the end of the half, the Bulldogs had 19 turnovers and faced a 31-point deficit.
And even after being up big at halftime, Michigan kept up the press. Daniels hounded her man all the way down the court on Ferris State’s opening possession and pressured a pass to sail out of bounds. If the first few minutes of the game set the tone, the first minutes of the second half sent a message — the Wolverines were going to keep pressing until it didn’t work.
But the Bulldogs found few answers. Michigan kept up its defensive intensity even after it broke the triple-digit mark on the scoreboard. Even though they forced fewer turnovers in the third and fourth quarter, Ferris States’ offense looked rattled and the Wolverines’ offense only thrived off of that.
“We got easy layups off of that and it forced them to call timeout,” Crockett said. “It just disrupts the flow of the game.”
Late in the game, Michigan’s strategy seemed to be encapsulated all in one play. Crockett deflected a would-be pass off of an unlucky Bulldog, which carommed all the way down to Ferris State’s baseline. Crockett then swung the subsequent inbound pass all the way into the far corner where junior guard Macy Brown drained a wide-open three.
The Wolverines’ press had Ferris State in fits all night. And as it dominated the turnover margin, Michigan capitalized on the Bulldogs’ mistakes en route to a defensively dominant victory.
