More HS Basketball Video Lessons (Two Elite Girls Teams)

Learn from video. Two of the top teams in the Massachusetts top division faced off in a President's Day tournament. I have no affiliation with either team - no "dog in the fight" and "no axe to grind." 

Lessons always emerge and what is coached may or may not show up on the floor as players play. Also, the best teams usually have more size and athleticism meaning shorter time and margin of error in decision making. 

Start with the organization of a possession:

• Initial positioning (formation and spacing)
• Creating advantage 
• Executing at the 'scoring moment' 

Why are these successful teams? What's their intent? How are they similar or different from other clubs? 

Feehan (green) clears players setting up a side ball screen. How will Andover (white) defend? Why does the offensive player on the help side bring her defender back into the play? Why does the ball handler make the decision she chooses? The momentary advantage dissipates largely because the help defender stays engaged. 

This game matched up speed (Feehan) versus size (Andover). Analyzing personnel, examine size, athleticism, and skill. Feehan gains advantage with the first pass and the ball handler has two viable choices, the other being a pass for the open corner three. 

"Who died and made you king?" I don't like the spacing and it appears the "intent" was a diagonal screen to get the big open in the paint, possibly with a size mismatch.

Why does something work or not work? White sets up a "UCLA cut" into a side ball screen. Green has excellent help side defensive positioning with both players well into the paint. Then white brings another defender into play which cancels the ball screen.

 

Face up. One of Jay Bilas's "Toughness" principles is to catch and face the basket. Opportunistic defense swarms a player who doesn't and turns the ball over. 

Paint touches change the offense dynamic. They collapse the defense and open 'inside-outside' chances. Not the prettiest but the concept applies. 

Attention to detail. Another Bilas concept is "set up your cut." The BOB concept is a "sandwich screen" but the timing and execution isn't there.

 

Great offense is multiple actions and great defense is multiple efforts. Andover runs a back-screen/cross-screen and Feehan's trap ("put them in a glass box") is ineffective against Andover's size. 

 

VDE. Vision, decision, execution. Feehan has a "horns-like" set and opens a few possibilities including an open corner three or a corner cut to the hoop. Instead, they play into traffic. "Win in space." 

A good concept turns into second chance points. Andover runs a diagonal screen into a slip. I teach "bigs away come back into play" as a good rule of thumb. 

Players make the game. Extending defense offers both benefits and risks. Players make an individual play that is noteworthy. 

Turnovers may result from a flawed decision or execution. This slipped screen looked promising but the connection didn't happen. And the help defense was reacting quickly. 

Stronger teams often play few close games. That's an argument for practicing close and late situations. Andover played zero two possession games and Feehan had played only one this season. Predicting how players will respond in those situations isn't easy. In a one possession game late, Andover runs Iverson action but doesn't score and Feehan rushes the ball up court into traffic and turns the ball over.