WVU AD Wren Baker Praises Defense, Who Fits That Criteria?

WVU director of athletics Wren Baker talked about what he’s looking for from candidates in the men’s basketball job opening. Baker praised the defensive side of the ball in his discussion with the media.

“You have to be great defensively, period. I mean you look in this league over five years and every team that’s finished in the top half is generally top 50 in the country defensively,” Baker explained. “Most generally, people who are that good defensively, value possessions. So they tend to play a little bit slower and they tend to value offensive possessions, not a lot of turnovers, high offensive efficiency.”

So let’s take Baker’s comments literally and highlight the potential candidates with top 50 adjusted defense from KenPom this season.

**Rankings are as of Friday, March 15

Chris Jans, Mississippi State

Defensive Ranking: 22

Jans, who has briefly been mentioned by ESPN to possibly be involved in the search, is a great defensive coach. Wherever Jans has coached whether that’s Bowling Green State, New Mexico State or Mississippi State, defense has always been a strong suit of his teams. In Jans’ second season, MSU has allowed 69.6 points per contest, which isn’t as elite as his first team at Mississippi State but the Bulldogs allow just 96.8 points per 100 possessions.

Kyle Smith, Washington State

Defensive Ranking: 29

Smith, like Jans, has been one of the few current Power-5 coaches to be linked to the WVU in some capacity, whether it’s just rumors or legit. Smith was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year this year in his fifth season at Washington State. Smith has been able to rebuild the Cougars into an NCAA Tournament team this season through defense. WSU swept Arizona in Pac-12 play, allowing 72 points per game against the Wildcats, who averages 89 ppg.

Washington State averages 10.3 turnovers per game on defense, which is 63rd in the country. WSU is 311th in the country in tempo, which Baker also talked about when valuing offensive possessions.

Dustin Kerns, App State

Defensive Ranking: 33

Kerns has been a usual name on WVU’s rumored candidates. App State did fail to make the NCAA Tournament this season, falling to James Madison in the Sun Belt Championship. The Mountaineers have showcased an impressive defense, allowing just 66.5 points per game, which is 41st in the country.

App State has held opponents to 60 points or under 13 times this year.

Niko Medved, Colorado State

Defensive Ranking: 40

Medved is another usual candidate who has had his name thrown around for the past couple of weeks. Colorado State will return to the NCAA Tournament this postseason as an at-large bid with many other Mountain West schools. Medved has had his fair share of solid defensive teams during his time at Furman and Colorado State.

Like Washington State, CSU plays a very slow tempo, only turning the ball over 10.0 a game, which is 321st in the country.