Speak to Oklahoma State men's basketball coach Steve Lutz long enough and you'll learn that his biggest concern going into this season is defense.

In fact, it was his first answer to the first question during his time with the media at Big 12 media days last week in Kansas City and the question wasn't even really about defense.

It was about what the Cowboys must do to get over the hump and get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years. But that was his answer — defense.

“Our biggest hurdle is just going to be playing better defense,” Lutz said. “We have the offense to get there.”

He’s right. He did a good job of adding height and offensive talent in the portal, He added more scoring on the perimeter, and he has talented young freshmen that can play significant roles. But that offense doesn’t’ mean much if the Cowboys aren't playing well defensively.

What’s the best available fix?

The Best Available Fix

Well, I asked Lutz what that one thing was in Kansas City. His answer was, essentially, we’ll see.

“We’ve shown spurts in practice for extended periods of time where we’re pretty good defensively,” he said. “But until we get hit in the mouth [by an opponent] I’m not going to be able to answer that one for you.”

By that interview, the Cowboys had been hit in the mouth once by New Mexico, an exhibition loss.

“I can tell you that against New Mexico the other night that we weren’t nearly good enough,” Lutz said.

Last season the Cowboys were last in the Big 12 in scoring defense, as they allowed 84.2 points per contest. They were one of two Big 12 teams that allowed more than 80 points per game. In Big 12 the average got worse, going up to 85.2 points per contest, which was worst in the league.

In the gauntlet that is the Big 12 Conference, playing good defenses is not optional. Some of the best defensive teams in the country are in the Big 12, including Iowa State.

Fixing it takes time. What is the easiest fix for Oklahoma State? Rebounding.

Lutz sees rebounding as an extension of defense, and that’s an area OSU struggled in last season. In Big 12 play the Cowboys were the second-worst team during league play in combined opponent rebounds, giving up 38.9 per game. The leader in that category, Iowa State, gave up 32.2 rebounds per game.

That led the Cowboys to have the fourth-worst rebounding margin in the conference, giving up 3.1 more rebounds per game than they had.

Rebounding on the defensive end denies the opponent the opportunity to grab extra offense and easy baskets. Rebounding on the offensive end gives the Cowboys a chance to score extra points.

While Lutz and his staff work through how to get the most out of their players on the defensive end, rebounding is an easy way to bolster the weakness until it’s a strength.