There is a spike in the speed of the game as the opposition decides to employ some full-court pressure.
But for Amy Beggin, things slow to a crawl.
She can clearly see all the passing lanes open up. The thing is, not everybody can.
Yes, you can teach players the fundamentals - how to keep their heads up, how to maneuver through the death traps in a press. Still, finding microscopic pores through which to cram a pass takes a level of concentration not everybody has.
Beggin does.
On a night she nearly tied her career-high in assists, Beggin had more dishes than a kitchen Saturday, distributing out seven dimes against Alcorn State - one shy of her career-high eight.
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"The team that we were playing was a quick team," Beggin said, explaining why she was sifting the Braves' defense. "Anytime you're facing a pressing team, you're likely to get some easy opportunities on the other end. A lot of it was off of the press-breaker."
A lot, but not all of it.
Beggin's penetration had the Braves' interior defense collapsing, forcing Alcorn State to leave the perimeter open all night. While the Braves had to concentrate on keeping Beggin out of the paint, UNM was left with several openings from 3-point range, where the Lobos were 8-for-16 on the night.
Should we expect anything different, though? After all, Beggin is a hybrid product of Katie Montgomery and Mandi Moore - Mongtgomery, who had a knack for shooting the 3-ball, and Moore, who had an aptitude for finding open teammates on the floor.
"I don't like to compare myself to anybody," Beggin said. "I think I'm a unique player. A lot of people like to compare me to Mandi Moore from here or Katie Montgomery. I just like to have their respect and let them be who they are. I try to be who I am."
Triples and dimes - Beggin is a combo guard.
Beggin, who won the 3-point contest at the Lobo Howl, has been relatively proficient from the outside, shooting about 37 percent from the 3-point line in her career. Much like Moore, who is UNM's all-time leader in assists with 651, Beggin handed out 141 assists last year.
"I was really lucky," she said. "I had Katie Montgomery to learn from my freshman year. She helped me out a lot. Then, I had Mandi Moore on the bench. I couldn't have asked for anything else. They helped me prepare to take over that position."
Now, she will look to impart the knowledge she gained from the veterans to freshman Nikki Nelson.
Beggin said she has tried to teach Nelson some of the nuances of the collegiate game.
"Nikki's a smart player," she said. "I've helped her a little bit with the stuff I've picked up over these past couple of years."
Head coach Don Flanagan said Nelson can learn by watching.
"(Beggin) got defended in the backcourt the entire game," he said. "I thought she did a nice job. Sometimes she didn't get her head up and get the ball down the floor, but I'm never going to be too harsh a critic on Amy, because she plays so hard all the time."
And if a player plays hard, in Flanagan's book, mistakes are forgivable.
But Beggin didn't make many Saturday, except maybe not shooting enough - something she'll need to work on since the Lobos lost two key contributors in Brandi Kimble and Dionne Marsh.
But it's hard for somebody who's so used to passing.
"If it comes down to it and that ball is in my hands, I'm going to do what I can to score," she said, pausing. "Or set up a basket for someone else."
