Defending - Villanova jump to the ball

Defending
Villanova jump to the ball

Jay Wright

1 passes to 2 and basket cuts. X1 jumps to the ball, denies with the left hand, right forearm and fist are on 1 (ball-you-man), back to the baseline. X1 does not jump to the basket, 1 could pop back out for a pass and 3-point shot.

Variations

- X1 passes to 1 and closes out (Nash jump to the ball)
- 1 can pass to a player on the left or right wing (Dick Bennett jump to the ball).

Ian MacKinnon - 1 cuts and posts up, X1 three-quarters from the top, 2 dribbles to the corner, X1 fronts or gets to the low side, then 1 clears weakside (see Defending - Miami 3-point).

PGC - close out, jump to the ball, deny a cut, help position.

See Defending - Nash jump to the ball, 1 on 1 with passers, Pasquali denial (backcut).

X1 denies a flash cut (also forearm and fist), taking 1 outside the scoring area.

Bill Pangos - Give and go, smash the flash - X1 defends a give and go then smashes the flash from the weakside (denies the ball), 2 can get the ball to 1 at any time, rotate cutter to defence to passer.

Lloyd Mitchell (Greenvale) - Denying the weakside flash cut - if X1 is in a flat triangle position he should have no trouble defending 1's move over the top (if X1 is more than one step off the passing lane it gives his man too much room to make a weakside cut to the ball). If 1 starts high and cuts baseline, X1 should deny the high-post pass, open to the ball and front as 1 cuts low, then deny if 1 keeps cutting out to the sideline.

See Defending - Memphis flash post, Ball cut and help, Pasquali denial (weakside cuts).

Ian MacKinnon - X1 defends a weakside flash, 1 catches at the top, live 1-on-1, one shot.

X1 defends a backdoor cut by turning his head and throwing his inside hand down to the floor to contest a bounce pass, the other arm is forearm and fist on 1. Do not open up with back to the defender.

Dean Smith - he prefers X1 to face the ball as 1 reverses to the basket, there is very little distance to travel, and a foul call is less likely.

Ettore Messina - X1 should turn his head and switch denial hand immediately even if this means losing sight of the ball briefly, it's more important to see the area where 1 is cutting, e.g. a potential backscreen or help rotation. If a post player goes backdoor, open up in order to get the attacker on your back and push him out of the lane (otherwise you lose sight of the ball too close to the basket, and can't push him out).

(Variation - 1 posts up, see Defending - Wootten perimeter-to-post, Tar Heels vision)

1 on 1 (ball at the top)

Defender X2 doesn't allow a pass in the scoring area (go again). Attacker 3 tries to free himself on the wing, be physical to get open (don't dance around), either walk into X2, step across his top foot and step out, or take him down and v-cut across his face. It's live on a catch, two-dribble limit, rotate passer to attacker to defender to end of the line, but the defender must make a stop to get out. 1 must make good passing decisions.

See Defending - Duke driving line, Denial, Layups - Blast cuts.

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