The three-point shot has become a valuable weapon for teams across the league, but especially for the Bulldogs this season as part of their successful, multifaceted offensive attack.

In the last few years, Jones’ teams have been known for their rebounding abilities and interior play near the basket, as evidenced by the emergence of forward Justin Sears ’16 as an unstoppable force in the paint last season. But this season, the team has shifted toward a more balanced offense that has seen a rise in the number of shots taken from long range and their conversion at a higher percentage.

“I think last year [the offense] was a little more [focused] exclusively on interior play for us, but now it’s more of a balance between the [interior and perimeter play],” Sears said. “Jack, Javier and Armani, they’re very good shooters and they’re successful [outside] because we’re a very strong interior team … We’re successful inside because we’re able to spread out the offense because we shoot the three. We just have a good balance between the two.”

Last season, Yale, which finished second in the Ivy League, attempted 16.1 shots from behind the arc per game, hitting 5.3 on average for a 32.9 shooting percentage from three. Improvements in perimeter play this year, coinciding with Montague’s rise as a shooter, have led to 19.0 three-point attempts per game from the Bulldogs at a clip of 37.1 percent, or 7.1 made per contest.

In roughly the same number of possessions per game, this improved shooting from long range has boosted the team’s offense, which scores nearly two points more per outing this season than it did last season. The differences have become even more pronounced during the Ivy League campaign, as a slower pace of play in the conference season leads to fewer possessions.

“We’ve certainly made more threes because of Jack’s accuracy,” Jones said. “But Javier has improved his percentage and so has Armani Cotton, so that really added to our team having multiple guys who can knock down shots from the outside.”

The team’s improved ability at shooting the three, however, cannot completely account for the team’s improved offensive play this season. Three-point shooters are just as, if not more, valuable for their ability to space the floor and give other players on the court extra room to operate on offense.

As teams hope to avoid giving up wide open looks to Montague, the league’s best three-point shooter for whom a three is “almost like a layup” according to guard Makai Mason ’18, defenders hesitate to help against guards driving in the lane or forwards posting up down low. Thus, both guards and forwards benefit from the presence of a reliable three-point shooter on the court.

“Having a three-point shooter on the floor, it’s hard to help off of him,” Montague said. “It basically just opens up the floor for the other four players. If you’re setting a ball screen, it’s hard for that defender to help off a shooter. You can’t play the penetration lanes as much. You basically have to know where that shooter is at all times, chasing through screens. If you don’t, it’s really easy to find an open look for a shooter.”

Mason concurred, saying that three-point shooters are a constant threat on offense. He noted that the floor opens up, and the paint in particular is less crowded, as defenders are unable to help off of knockdown shooters.

Defenses are forced to pick their poison, as opponents can be hurt inside going one-on-one against Sears, attacked in the paint by a slashing guard like Duren or stabbed with a dagger of a three by Montague. In fact, Montague noted that adversaries often can only pick to defend the key or allow themselves to be vulnerable around the rim.

“The three-point shot puts a lot of pressure on the defense,” Duren said. “I think especially with our team, we have such an inside presence that teams really key in on that. So, it’s hard to get that [presence] initially, but when we start hitting shots from three-point range, it opens [the inside] up, and it makes it a lot harder for [the defense] to stop our offense when we are not only hitting twos but also hitting threes.”