It’s easy to marvel at the many offensive gifts of Aday Mara.

The 7-foot-3 sophomore center can finish over anyone thanks to added muscle this past offseason. He’s nimble with his footwork and can be just as dangerous passing over the top of defenses, too.

Every Mara catch on the block is met with murmurs of anticipation at Pauley Pavilion.

But it’s the progress on defense in recent weeks that has Bruins head coach Mick Cronin “most proud.”

“You can break down a lot of analytical stuff,” Cronin said prior to Wednesday morning’s practice at the Mo Ostin Basketball Center.

“If you look analytically at our two-point defense when he’s in the game, it’s exponentially better — exponentially better — because it’s not just blocked shots, it’s changed shots.”