For whatever reason, Chris Holtmann has gained a reputation as a defense-first coach. Maybe it’s due to the toughness he preaches, or possibly it has happened because his teams have always played with a slow tempo. Even Holtmann himself has indulged the thought at times, saying a month ago that defense “has maybe been what a lot of our teams have been built on.”
The reality, however, shows something different.
All three Gardner-Webb teams he coached had more efficient offenses than defenses. The last two of his three Butler teams were more efficient offensively than defensively. At Ohio State, his first two teams had higher-rated defenses, but last season and this season the Buckeyes have been more efficient offensively than defensively.