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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 28, ISSUE 2 73 season but also made a robust 52.8 percent from two- point range. She has a nice teardrop runner and a good mid-range game, which she showed occasionally on the baseline, but her repertoire could grow. "That's been stressed," Oden said. "Right now, I'm working more on my pull-up game, because I elevate a lot on my pull-ups, so they're like, 'Make sure you do it.' We played pick-up this summer and they said, 'You need to be doing that in a game,' because the pull-up is a hard thing to guard. First, (as a defender) you need to guard Defense Up? P urdue's defense was salty last season, when it held opponents to only 59.8 points per game, the best mark in the Big Ten. It could be better this season, thanks to an added dose of quickness and length on the perimeter and wing and more shot-blocking ability inside. This sum- mer, Dominique Oden almost immediately noticed a difference. "As we've encountered already in practice, some passes that you expect to get there don't get there because someone is much quicker than you thought they'd be," the sophomore guard said. "Or someone's arms are longer or they can jump higher. Throwing up a lob pass, it has to be high, otherwise they're going to jump up and get it. "It helps you adjust, because you're like, 'Oh, now I have to pay attention to this, because my teammates are super athletic.' But it also gives us an edge because other teams aren't going to expect (it)." Purdue will miss Ashley Morrissette's ability on the perimeter, as the departed point guard was an under- rated defender, likely because she was overshadowed by her skill offensively. But Morrissette totaled 82 steals last season, the 14th-best single-season mark in Purdue history. The Boilermakers might not have one player who can replicate the mark, but collectively they likely have a higher defensive ceiling. Andreona Keys had 47 steals last season, the top returnee for the Boil- ermakers, plus Lamina Cooper, a long athletic wing, had 19 in limited minutes. Much of Purdue's hopes, though, come inside. Be- fore Ae'Rianna Harris became an every-game starter late in the season, Purdue lacked a rim-protecter on the interior. But the 6-foot-1 forward made her pres- ence felt, blocking a freshman-record 75 shots. She could have interior help this year, with athletic Tamara Farquhar being a shot-blocking defender inside as well. And Purdue has the long-limbed Fatou Diagne and 6-6 Nora Kiesler in the paint. "We think we're quicker, but it's trusting the (de- fensive) process," Coach Sharon Versyp said. "If you get beat, you've got 'Ria who is a protector, Fatou is a protector and now Tam is a protector. What Tam brings is that when someone is going to the hole, she can come out of nowhere, like 'Ria. If someone is going past them, they can still go get it." — Kyle Charters Charles Jischke Because of its length and athleticism — and better depth inside, like freshman Dani Lawson (left) — Purdue thinks its defense could be better this season. It already led the Big Ten last year.