A '''full-court press''' is a basketball term that refers to a defensive style in which the defense applies Man-to-man defense or zone defense to pressure the offensive team the entire length of the court before and after the inbound pass. Some presses attempt to deny the initial inbounds pass and trap ball handlers either in the backcourt or at midcourt. Defenses not employing a full-court press generally allow the offensive team to get halfway down the court (a half-court press) or near the basket before applying strong defensive pressure.
A full-court press takes a great deal of effort, but can be an effective tactic. Often when teams are behind late in a game, they will apply full-court pressure as a means of attempting to produce turnovers, as well as tire opponents. Certain teams, such as those coached by Rick Pitino, are known for applying full-court pressure during most of the game. Presses are especially effective against teams with poor ballhandlers, shallow benches (since players become more fatigued attacking a press), or teams with deliberate offenses (since taking the ball up the court can waste a substantial portion of the shot clock). Once a press is broken, however, the defensive team is vulnerable to a potential fast break or open three point shot opportunity since defensive players may be caught behind the play.
Effective press breaks employ quick passing more often than dribbling to advance the ball up the floor. Short, quick passes are less prone to turnovers than either long passes or dribbling. Another effective way to break a man-to-man press is to pass to the center (basketball). Most presses keep a "last man back" (usually the center) whose job is to disrupt a potential fast break resulting from the press; this may leave the offensive center unguarded and able to receive a pass near midcourt.
with Andy Landers,
University of Georgia Head Women's Basketball Coach
University of Georgia's Coach Landers has used, and recommends using, the full court press for one reason - because most other teams don't! He thinks that if you practice, and perfect, the full court press, not only will your team be able to harass the other team, you will be able to break any pressure they put on you. In this excellent presentation (filmed at one of the largest demonstration clinics in the US), Coach Landers shares 8 effective drills to perfect your full court pressure. He divides the court into three areas and teaches you different ways to pressure each area. With the help of on-screen graphics and on-court demonstrators, Landers demonstrates each drill first and then lets you see it at full speed. The drills start with 1 on 1 and move up to more complex, 5 on 5 drills, that help players learn the full court press. The drills shown in this video, and the building blocks for the press that Coach Landers demonstrates, are essential for any press. Whether you run a 2-2-1, 1-2-2, 1-2-1-1, or a Run and Jump full court press, this material can help you with positioning, spacing, ball pressure, and help defense.
with Gary Williams,
University of Maryland Head Coach;
, 2002 NCAA Champions, Seven "Sweet Sixteen" appearances
"Full court pressure is the ultimate weapon in basketball."
- Gary Williams
A game-tested, baseline-to-baseline method for trapping and applying pressure defensively! Coach Williams gives you an insider's look into one of the most potent and aggressive full-court defensive systems. A large part of Williams' success has come from his aggressive and intense style of play, which includes the full court pressure defense. Williams provides extensive game footage to help illustrate the finer points of this defensive system, as well as on court demonstrations to further enhance his entire defensive playbook. Coach Williams also teaches you drills, special situations, rules, and the proper Xs and Os to best utilize this dominating defensive system. He systemically builds this defense as he walks through each player's positioning, responsibilities, when and where traps should occur, and how to rotate out of them, along with the transition needed to prevent easy scores and get the backdrop defense established. This defense is used to cause turnovers, create fast breaks, control game tempo and increase scoring opportunities with an attacking, trapping style of play, which can easily be transitioned into a half-court, man-to-man set. Williams also shares with you five "secrets" to utilizing this type of smothering defense. In this complete guide, three major presses are outlined: man-to-man, 1-3-1, and 1-2-1-1. Also included is instruction on situational Run-and-Jump pressure. This full court pressure defense is the perfect weapon to give to your team an advantage that is completely adaptable to your team and can be used at any level of play.
with Kelvin Sampson,
Indiana University Head Coach,
former University of Oklahoma Head Coach;
'01-'02 National Coach of the Year; 2002 Final Four
With 5-on-5 breakdowns, Kelvin Sampson teaches effective methods for stopping a team's offensive transition on every possession. Coach Sampson supplies step-by-step instructions on how to design and deploy an effective transition defense. He includes competitive drills such as Transition Defense Drill, Circle Transition Drill, Toughness and Transition Drill, Single Bubble Drill, NBA Shuttle Drill and Defending the Screen & Roll. The toughest teams are the teams that find a way to win. This video will help your team build mental toughness, physical toughness, and the ability to communicate, and will help you to create a competitive practice environment. Sampson stresses the significance of having the best player be a leader for his teammates and be excited about practice everyday. Eliminate easy baskets with these all-inclusive drills provided by Coach Sampson. These drills will build your athletes' commitment to team defense. With these drills, techniques, and competitive fire, Sampson will demonstrate how to change your practice and your players into a stifling defensive unit at any level of play. The results will be evident on the court and in how your team handles every kind of defensive situation.
with Billy Tubbs,
Lamar University Head Coach,
former Oklahoma University Head Coach,
NCAA Runner-Up ('88), 2X National "Coach of the Year"
Coach Tubbs' press is a trapping, man-to-man press based on quickness, anticipation, and communication. This defense has been the cornerstone of one of the most successful coaches in the country. Using on-court demonstration, Tubbs details each player's responsibilities, when and how to trap, how to stunt, and transitional coverage once the press has been broken. He includes basic coverages for all press breaks and breakdown drills to improve coverage and communication skills. Tubbs teaches trapping areas, close down techniques, defending screens, and covering guard penetration, skip passes and other special situations. He also teaches special sideline calls such as trapping off the first dribble and trapping off the first pass. This is an enthusiastic and impressive instructional video for teaching one of the most feared trapping defenses in the game today!
with Rene Portland,
Penn State Women's Basketball Head Coach,;
7th winningest coach of all-time, 4x Big Ten Coach of the Year, 2x WBCA National Coach of the Year
Rene Portland gives a detailed demonstration of the renowned "Mosquito Defense" that legendary Marquette Coach Al McGuire used to win the 1977 NCAA National Championship. In this DVD, Portland teaches this innovative, four-part pressure defensive system giving detailed explanations of the different positions and their roles. The Penn State Lady Lions work on at least one of these press systems everyday, and Portland has been able to successfully modify the system to meet the needs of her team. This video will help you strive to protect the baseline, control the tempo of the game, vary the length of the pressure and move people around. In addition to teaching the Mosquito Defenses, Portland also instills a few of her own unique drills designed to build communication skills, be attentive, and protect the paint. It is a must have for anyone who remembers the profound achievements of Al McGuire and who wants to model their own defensive systems after his. Rene Portland does a phenomenal job of making the Mosquito System understandable, and with this DVD you can include this dominating defensive system in your own basketball playbook. Coaches, please note: the name of one drill (necessary to get a full understanding of the positions on the court and the formation of the defense) may offend, and may not be appropriate to play in front of your team.
with Bruce Pearl,
University of Tennessee Head Coach;
2006 SEC Coach of the Year,
3X Horizon Coach of the Year
Coach Pearl is widely known for his fast tempo and full court pressure. He believes that a breaking offense can create tempo, but the full court attack on defense can control tempo. This "encyclopedia" of Pearl's full court style is presented by taking parts of Pearl's previously released videos from Pearl's days at Southern Indiana (D-II National Champs in '95), and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, (NCAA Sweet 16 in '05), and is divided into three parts: a lecture session where he breaks down the defense; on the court, where the defense is shown in a teaching setting; and through extensive highlight footage, where you can see his Tennessee teams using this defense in game action. The "Building the defense" segment is a step-by-step tutorial on how to choose each player for the pressing system. The advantages of Pearl's defense are numerous and include: it makes teams change their normal style and forces them to prepare especially for you, it can help you score in bunches and break a game wide open and it wears down the opponent physically and mentally. This full court pressure defensive system will present a way for you to control the tempo of games instead of reacting to it!
with Bob Huggins,
West Virginia University Head Coach;
Conference USA "Coach of the Decade"
Coach Huggins' defense was created out of necessity early in his career and has been a part of his program everyday. Introduction to this defense begins with player-by-player assignments and coverage. The basic goal is to divide the court in half from basket to basket. Once the ball is on one side, the defense keeps it on that side. Ball pressure makes a big difference, keeping the offensive player from throwing skip passes and reversing the ball. To show the slides, a 5-on-5 zone shell drill is demonstrated. Huggins then moves the zone press up the floor, making it a full court attack. Once the ball is inbounds, keeping it in the box in the backcourt is important. Players away from the ball are on the line and up the line, in a direct line between the ball and the player in their area. Two methods of playing this full court trap include regular and a "speed them up" approach. Players are either trapping, anticipating, or protecting the goal. Each duty is broken down into several teaching points.
Coach Harney unpacks his full court offensive attack against pressure by providing a mixture of zone and man-to-man principles, drills and concepts. This aggressive and attacking offense has worked successfully at all levels to effectively break pressure against the diamond press. The alignment is a 1-2-2 set with two players at the half court corners. Parts of this offense include a guard decoy cut, sideline jump stop, guard release to the half court line and a 2-on-1 on the other end. Against a 2-2-1 or 1-2-2 press, Harney demonstrates Breaker, his regular press offense. The triangle concept is part of the breaker attack - a trailer, a long diagonal and a middle option. In the half court, Harney believes in creating unique set plays. He demonstrates several of these sets in a step-by-step manner. Each set has multiple options to score from several spots on the floor. Harney also shares strategies and offensive concepts against the zone defense.
with Dana Altman,
Creighton University Head Coach;
2-time Missouri Valley Coach of the Year
Coach Altman's press promotes aggressiveness, helps control tempo, hides deficiencies and utilizes a deep bench. Using players in a clinic setting the Green and Blue Press takes shape starting with the 4-man on the ball backed by the 2-man and 3-man at the free throw line. The third line of defense is the point guard near half court with the 5-man back to protect the basket. Once the ball comes in it is trapped and the other defenders adjust. This immediately disrupts the flow of the game for the opponent. The key to the Blue is to trap the ball in an area 10 feet on each side of the half court line. Altman teaches his players to trap immediately when the ball crosses half court. Both presses are used during games based on the kind of tempo and pressure desired.
Keno Davis unveils the full court pressing system that has haunted offenses all over the country, and has been a staple for the Davis family for many decades. Defending the back of this pressing defense is paramount and is the first part of building this press, and Coach Davis presents a detailed description of each defender's responsibility in the press...
with Don Meyer, Northern State University (SD) Head Coach; second all-time winningest coach in NCAA history (891 wins); 2X NAIA National Coach of the Year, NAIA Hall of Fame
Utilize full-court and half-court trapping to disrupt offensive patterns. Take a star out of the game ... speed up tempo ... force non-handlers to handle and role players to take shots. Develop a philosophy of high percentage trapping to score from your defense.
with Joanne P. McCallie,
Duke University Head Women's Basketball Coach,
2005 AP Coach of the Year,
11 NCAA Appearances, 2005 NCAA Runner-Up at Michigan State
Attack from all areas on the court!
Join Duke Women's Basketball Coach Joanne P. McCallie as she leads you through principles and responsibilities of the 1-2-2 Match-Up Zone and the 1-2-1-1 Full Court Press. Coach McCallie's on-court demonstration includes pass rules, dribble rules, rules vs. cutters, rules vs. a two-guard front, rules vs. the Pick and Pop and rules against two high posts for both of these attacking defenses.
Coach McCallie opens by explaining the four principles that your defensive scheme must follow if you want to be successful. Breaking down the 1-2-2 Match-Up, McCallie emphasizes that you must disrupt the ball, eliminate passing lanes and place pressure on the offense.
In addition to explaining these principles, McCallie demonstrates on the court where defenders must be in each situation. McCallie finishes out by providing two pressing drills that you can use to help your team build the pressure on your opponent to force turnovers and bad shots.
With this video you will be able to create a tough defense that will keep opponents guessing and change the tempo of the game.
with Tubby Smith, University of Minnesota Head Coach Head Coach,
former University of Kentucky Head Coach
1998 NCAA Champions!
Coach Smith teaches a full- and half-court defensive system that focuses on stealing the ball, challenging shooters, speeding up the game and disrupting your opponent's offense. Smith emphasizes that this system starts in the half-court focusing on eliminating post entry and penetration by pressuring the ball and fronting the post. He places special emphasis on defending the low post against down screens, back screens, cross screens and ball screens while also sealing the baseline and using help and recover techniques to stop penetration. In addition, he reveals his "five musts" for a successful defensive attack. Next, Smith breaks down the full-court match-up press using player demonstration and drills. He covers traps, secondary traps, cross-court traps and when to drop out of the press. Smith also demonstrates his Diamond 1-2-1-1 Full-Court Press which allows your players the freedom to gamble, create, and maintain defensive position and pressure. Use this time tested defensive system to help your team create turnovers and easy scoring opportunities!
