In fact, I’ve seen us blow a defensive set when everyone switched to man-to-man BUT Buckles, leading to a dunk for the other team. Second, the match-up zone defense is extremely difficult to attack. As seen in the breakdown of the 2-3 matchup zone, Pitino likes to use “token” pressure at times to slow the other team down. Third, the match-up zone defense can be used to start the fast break. 2. Card Chronicle, a Louisville Cardinals community, By Remote Cardinal It is the Temple Match-up Zone Defense eBook. With that said, expect Iona to be an attack-minded defense that looks to force turnovers wherever and whenever they can. These press-breaks take advantage of knowing how a defender will move in his zone based on the ball movement, then dribbling or moving the ball through the press knowing where the holes should be. This match-up zone is the ultimate match-up zone defense because it deals with every scenario when it comes to a ball screen and all the different pick and rolls. You allow the ball-handler to beat his defender on the dribble and now you have an undefended player speed-dribbling toward the basket. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. If it’s a winning defense, use it! So here we go. Light pressure in the backcourt from one of the guards slows down the offense just a bit. ... Louisville’s defense played well. The match-up zone is a "hybrid" defense, which combines the tenacity and pressure of man-to-man, with the help and support of a zone. Zone defense gets a bad rap. Once the ball-handler crosses mid-court, another defender, who has stayed even with the ball and in the shadow of the primary defender during the dribble up, cuts over and double-teams the ball-handler providing effectively 4 defenders (2 players, mid-line and side line). He’s already racking up commitments from recruits who will presumably fit his aggressive style of defense. A Match-up Zone can cause problems for offenses finding ways to score. Injuries really hurt our new players, even if the injury doesn’t happen to them. It’s like a boxer in a title fight feeling out his opponent early, but once Pitino feels out the other team, he’ll pounce. It’s much more than that. He talks about why you show run this match-up zone defense and it’s advantages. That has improved to +7.2 in ACC conference games. Because most often, they do struggle on the intake of the defense. * You are playing against a high volume of post-up teams and penetration teams. I am, by no means, an expert of the X's and O's of basketball. Now, what I'm about to go into is very likely me on my assent of Mount Stupid, but I'm going to go ahead and post anyway. Our half-court defense was getting beat in the match-up zone because of execution errors, not fundamental flaws in the scheme. (Interesting Gorgui side note with respect to that recent Gorgui block +/- analysis…Gorgui is supposed to call for a switch to man-to-man when there is lane penetration that he’s going to help defend. It was all about denying the ball to enter your zone. Louisville basketball has a chance to prove it can overcome a zone defense and get a resume-building win in Wednesday's road battle at Syracuse. x3, x4, x5 slide back to original positions. It’s a new day in New Rochelle, NY. Furthermore, if the zone starts to break down, it’s not impossible to call for a switch to man-to-man mid-possession. Pitino is a master on defense. When we switched to other traditional half-court sets, teams beat us with skill because our team isn’t as skilled at a traditional 2-3 zone. Coaching the 1:2:2 Match-Up Zone provides a comprehensive overview of the core principles and fundamentals involved in the 1:2:2 match-up zone defense, which combines the basic elements of man-to-man defense on the ball with zone defense away from the ball. But when the opportunity is there, they’ll “jump” the ballhandler with a double team and look for an easy steal. Why can't Pitino just dumb his system down a little bit? The Louisville Cardinals played today and I had the chance to take some clips from the vaunted Rick Pitino pressure defense. This full-court press works by having each defender guard a specific area of the court and not worrying about how many men were in it. A match up zone is based on rules, which can differ from coach to coach. Pitino will have to alter a few things here and there with the Gaels. This forces teams to have to utilize big men to inbound the ball—if they can get the ball in at all. Gorgui shouldn’t play 35+ mins because that will take away some of his aggression and mean Gorgui is the Gorgui we want out there. 109. Why does everyone say that freshman struggle with Pitino's "system"? Just like how it’s easier to rebound defensively in man-to-man D versus a zone D, so it goes with securing a blocked shot. Zone presses are easily beaten when your team knows they are coming and has practiced specific press-breaking movements. So, in recent games, starting with Notre Dame, we quit running the match-up zone when Gorgui was on the bench. Also includes definitions, match-up hybrids, fundamentals and drills, adjustments and pressure from the match-ups, trapping, stunting, … The goal was to keep pressure on the ball and match-up man-to-man on the inbounds, but then execute double-teams depending on two things: ball location and your man's location. Louisville ate up Duke in the 2013 Elite Eight with exactly this type of pressure. Gregg Marshall used this defense to get Wichita State to the Final Four and almost to the National Championship game. This instantly makes the traditional zone beating offensive scheme less effective and you typically have a big man trying to pass out of a double team to people that are being guarded man-to-man. Match up is a zone with man to man principles. One of the easiest ways to trigger the switch is passing the ball into the low-post area that causes one of the edges of the bottom of the 2-3 to collapse. x3 protects the basket. A huge part of Pitino assistant coaches’ success when they move to a head coaching position comes from the defensive end. Each player must use man-to-man defense, area defense, and help defense. This is (one of technical on-the-court reasons) why Providence lit us up from outside. Our 12 points of an effective Match-Up Zone Defense 1. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. Either Gorgui’s ability to stay on the floor 35+ mins a game and/or Price’s ability to absorb and adequately lead the defense in reserve is very likely the most important key to the rest of the season. An influx of talented, lightning-quick guards like Tahlik Chavez and Ryan Myers fit exactly the type of aggressive defenders Pitino loves to sic on opposing ballhandlers. This post will not contain animated gifs of pressing defenses, nor a detailed history of basketball defenses. I have noticed two particular traps that are pretty unique to Louisville; one of which the SF does a variation of a "Run and Jump" trap but cuts into a likely passing lane for a steal. Although Tim Cluess built Iona basketball up to become a perennial contender in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Rick Pitino is here to take the program to the next level. on Jan 18, 2012, 8:00pm EST Our defense loses its teeth when we don’t execute and becomes a basic 2-3, which we aren’t as skilled at as other teams. Second, match the offensive alignment by rotating clockwise. Early this season, Chane was offender #1 for allowing open threes by opposing teams for not picking up the right man during this switch. We are going to run the offense that we want to run and act rather than react. or a big man has to come and help, the defender on the inbounder is right there to double. Who cares about bravery, or whatever? A complete coaching guide to the match-up zone shown from three major zone formations: The 1-3-1, the 2-1-2, and the 1-2-2 with detailed information on the coverage rule, cutter's rule and basic continuities for each of these three formations. One of the ways he applies full-court pressure is by denying the catch on the inbounds. In other words, 22nd-ranked Louisville (6-1) may not rely so much on Pitino's patented 2-3 matchup zone, a scheme built on coordinated chaos that … Price doesn’t have the experience yet to run this defense. He knows he’s good. LOUISVILLE, Ky. - After having not played since Feb 1. due to COVID protocols within the program, Louisville men's basketball is back in action. In the first half of the 2013 Final Four, Pitino’s Louisville team denied the catch on the inbounds for much of the first half. He has continually, throughout his career, been the trend-setter through innovation and making adjustments and improvements to his defensive schemes. Success is dependent on smart, knowledgable players and communication. It wasn't particularly unique to Pitino, but Pitino taught his players to go all-out for steals and pretty much not worry about it if you got beat. In contrast with their inability to get stops late in the game against Louisville, this Blue Devil defense is much-improved now, with the Virginia matchup being a … Because he noticed that against some of our more "quality" competition, and with Gorgui on the bench, we struggled with the timing and communication of switches in our half-court defense. If you don't understand the system or make slow or bad decisions, you will cause baskets for the other team. With that said, he’s one of the all-time great coaches during halftime. Perhaps instead of saying "defense is the problem", Coach Pitino should start saying that "defense is the solution. Light pressure in the backcourt from one of the guards slows down the offen… The most important player in this match-up zone defense scheme is easily the Center. The on-ball defender closes-out and plays tight like in man-to-man. Description. The 2018 NCAA basketball tournament has been one for the ages, giving college basketball fans monumental upsets and amazing come-from-behind victories. For whatever reason, man-to-man is considered the more courageous way of defending. The last scheme/concept we’re looking at is like a scaled-back version of the above clip. DIAGRAM 5: 1-2-2 match-up zone vs. 2-1-2 offense. So, a quick review of those questions, also a TLDR; version of the above: Simply, Rick Pitino’s system is a defense driven system in which a full-court match up press is utilized in conjunction with an unique match-up zone defense designed to confuse the opposing team’s offense via switching, control tempo and disrupt flow via steals and deflections. The superior athletic ability of our freshmen compared to our competition covers a lot of their mistakes early on, but when it gets to the meat of the season and athletic ability is even or possibly at a disadvantage at times, only proper execution will suffice. Similar concept to ball denial, but in this scheme, allowing the catch isn’t the worst thing that can happen. Pitino favors a 2-3 matchup zone, but it’s not the kind of zone defense you’ll see at a CYO game on Sunday. I am just like most of you, a fan of college basketball and a supporter of Louisville Cardinal athletics. * When you are coming out of a time-out. Why does chocolate covered fruit taste so damn good? Seeing the proper execution and how effective it is valuable to understanding and changing the behavior of new players on defense. Length: 224 pages. A defender is put on the inbounder and he’s there to help double team and trap when necessary. Two defensive men must constantly defend three offensive men. It’s tough to make any 100% perfect predictions in regards to the scheme and style Pitino is going to bring to Iona basketball. Ultimate Matchup Zone Playbook. I think it’s the combination of the bitter elements of the chocolate and the sweetness of the fruit together all compounded behind the endorphin releasing smell and guilt-shedding excuse of eating healthy anti-oxidants. Third, guard the ball aggressively, contesting all … Who cares about bravery, or whatever? Some match up zones look more like a typical zone, where others look closer to a man to man defense. 1 passes to 3. x4 takes away shot (hands high!) To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. It has not and will not benefit us to change our defensive style. This is why ND’s burn offense hurt us so badly. 4. Be sure to see the detailed animation and Coach Sar's 1-3-1 Match-up Zone. For whatever reason, man-to-man is considered the more courageous way of defending. Pitino pioneered several other now "classic" traps into this match-up press and it is the basis of the press that Louisville (and many other teams) runs today. Although most zones eventually end up in a match up, the true match-up zone is unique in that it utilizes a series of defensive … At times, Pitino’s teams will apply this light pressure before dropping back into their 2-3 matchup zone. Your man is wide-open or 2. Zone defense gets a bad rap. We have a lot to look forward to as these young interior players grow. Match-up zone is a combination defense, combining elements of man-to-man defense (on ball), and zone defense (away from the ball). It's risky, but Louisville has done well with it. Once the defense is set, Louisville passes off defenders between one another without missing a beat. And things got worse when he did. However, as a guy who is daily trying to tame an ego, let me tell you that nobody is more embarrassed internally about the performance of this team than Pitino. The "Cut and Double" is an absolute classic and Pitino pioneered it. This match-up zone defense will help develop your player’s communication, stop great scorers, great scoring teams, employ man defense principles, and be difficult to scout. This is why Pitino is saying that defense is the problem. Correct execution doesn’t always result in a turnover (even though it significantly increases it), but poor execution often leads to open shots for the other team. 2 passes to 1. x2 defends 1. x1 slides to high post. Nobody else, other than a recent Pitino disciple that is now a head coach, does it in this unique way. Gorgui is our leader and Chane is no longer a liability and becoming quite adept at executing. This press was very different than all the other zone full-court presses in that it was all about ball-pressure. When Gorgui isn’t in the game, we aren’t very good at communicating or timing the switch. Here are 8 top sets to help beat it. Essentially it’s predicated on limiting transition points, forcing turnovers, neutralizing any sort of interior offense and daring teams to … I'm simply going to discuss how Rick Pitino's defenses have changed over the years and in doing so, perhaps give some of you some insight into the answers to the questions above. Wing Passes To Top. Even the best zone defense is vulnerable to great outside shooting, and Florida has hit .395 from beyond the arc as a team this season. It requires a quick athlete and good timing and if it fails, it usually ends up in an open 3-point shot or layup for the other team. Aggressive, active, and adaptable. The most famous of these double teams is known as the "Cut and Double" where the ball defender forces his man to speed up the dribble and to the sideline. It wasn’t until the final 10 minutes or so when Louisville’s pressure started to overwhelm the Shockers. The defender works the ballhandler a little bit, but turnovers aren’t necessarily the goal. DIAGRAM 4: 1-3-1 match-up zone vs. 2-1-2 offense. Watch hall Louisville sends the double team as soon as Duke’s Quinn Cook turns his back on the defense with a spin move. Pitino’s system is complex in the respect that it requires repetition in practice to understand. You must use both man to man and zone defensive principles. Lastly, I just want to comment that even though there are legitimate gripes going around with how this season has progressed, I still think Coach Pitino is a great coach. Coach Marshall teaches the whole to part method when he implements this zone defense. Additionally, our deny presses are "81" (full-court deny) and "61" (3/4 court deny). Pitino’s biggest compliment from coaches at the next level about his players always includes that they know how to play defense. Louisville can also limit the damage the zone does by rebounding its own misses. The most important player in this match-up zone defense scheme is easily the Center. Don Kelbick's match-up zone is governed by a set of rules and leaves interpretation of those rules to the players. You will understand how to “match-up” and cause confusion for the offense with a defense that conforms to their formations. This match-up zone defense will help develop your player’s communication, stop great scorers, great scoring teams, employ man defense principles, and be difficult to scout. Pitino moving Kuric to the PF spot is often credited as being the difference maker in that game offensively, but it also had a big impact on the defensive end as well. After all, he’s not going to have the same type of talent he was able to recruit at Kentucky and Louisville. Price isn’t inept at leading the defense, just ignorant. I personally believe that a combination of both is the best solution. Coach Pecora takes a lot of the techniques that Louisville and Syracuse use to create a hybrid 2-3 Match-up Zone defensive system that is different than any other zone in basketball today. The match-up press is definitely more complicated than a zone press in that you aren't just responsible for an area of the court, but you must know where your man is and where the ball is, and then act accordingly. It takes repetition to master the system and I’m very proud by the growth of Chane and Gorgui this season on the defensive side of the ball. The zone away from the ball resembles man-to-man "helpside" defense. Lack of accountability on transition defense Advantages of 1-1-3 Can hide a guy in foul trouble Rest periods on defense Teams practice man offense much more than they practice zone especially 1-1-3 zone Destroys Pick n’ Rolls o UCONN averaged 50 pick … I'll guarantee that move alone accounts for at least 100 steals in Pitino's Louisville tenure and for more than 10 dunks by T-will alone. I don’t know what the right answer to that is, only that it may not have changed anything but adding one more loss to the column, happening early in the season. It’s much more than that. Today, there are press-breaks designed to make it specifically look like the dribbler is going to fall into this trap, but actually break the trap. Why does Pitino say that defense is the problem this year? The on-ball defender closes out and plays tight to his opponent, using the same principles as a good man-to-man defense. His ability to adjust to what’s in front of him is perhaps his best quality as a coach. Our "80" match-up press may be setup in a 1-Up, 2-Up, 3-Up, or 4-Up alignment depending on how the offense is positioned in their press-breaker. The 2-1-2 zone defense is popular in basketball, particularly in youth basketball. He uses a very simplistic approach to stopping and keeping pressure on the ball, moving on the pass, and closing out - all with a five-man rebounding mentality. The man is as important as the ball. Most of the time when he calls for that switch and blocks the shot, we secure the block and when he doesn’t, we do not secure the block. The Match-Up Zone betterthanalayup.com Part I 4 Snapshot Here’s a quick overview of Gene Sullivan’s match-up zone. As a result, expect Pitino to adapt his system to fit his player if need be, but if we know one thing about the Hall-of-Fame coach, he loves to turn up the pressure. The Center communicates the switch and the players are supposed to wait for the call to make the switch. Traditionally it has worked out better for Pitino to take his lumps in January in order to be successful in February. Pitino favors a 2-3 matchup zone, but it’s not the kind of zone defense you’ll see at a CYO game on Sunday. There are a lot of decisions to make individually and a mistake will absolutely do one of two things: 1. I know UofL is way ahead in the points for/against by teaching and executing this move. It's a zone defense that acts a lot like a good man-to-man defense. Basketball's Lock-Down Ball Matchup Zone, 3rd Edition: A System of Defense Designed to Shut Down Dribble Penetration, Ball Screens, Post Play, and Contest Three-Point Shots Ron Siliko 4.0 out of 5 stars 1 We also have an adjustment called " Staggered ". He’s often said to not be an X’s and O’s coach, but that is definitely not true on defense. In a Match Up zone, offensive alignments never split defenders, overloads are easier to defend, and opponents have a tendency to get confused. This post is in response to a lot of fans on this site who have asked two or more of the following questions: First, a disclaimer. Wichita State went the first 25 minutes of the game without a turnover. * You are playing your second night of a back to back. Repetition is key to mastering the defense and even missing a week can cause players to be rusty in their decision making, lowering the efficiency of our defense. Attacking it is 80% mental. Like many rich guys who got rich because they are also smart guys, he’s got an ego. It’s altogether just a pleasant physical, sensual and mental experience. Finally, I’ll leave you with some personal thoughts on Pitino’s Defensive System. One of the best parts of a Pitino zone defense is that it can quickly turn into a trap on the baseline or a double just past halfcourt. DIAGRAM 2: 2-3 match-up zone vs. 1-2-2 offense (with assignments). In most cases, they ran a 2-2-1 sideline matchup press. Each man has area responsibility and man responsibility. DIAGRAM 3: 2-3 match-up zone vs. 1-3-1 offense. The likelihood of zone being played greatly diminishes as the quality of the players increases and vice versa. Of the various things John Chaney has brought to the Temple basketball program, the x-factor has been his notorious matchup zone defense. The Cardinals are second in the ACC in rebounding margin at +6.1. You see this move performed regularly by nearly every pressing team and coaches and fans alike hate their PG when they fall into this now classic trap. So even Gorgui is still learning and growing in this defense.). Most recently, in the last 2-3 years, Pitino has developed a match-up zone defense in the half-court that many of you are familiar with. Over the years, Pitino's zone press was figured out with specific press-breaks designed for it. Actually, he has this season. Unlike a traditional 2-3 zone, most HS coaches choose not to implement a match-up press because they do not have enough quality athletes to run it effectively, nor is the risk/reward trade-off beneficial with the amount of mistakes that HS players make. Teams who can’t get a quality shot against our match-up zone can often get a quality shot against our 2-3. The match-up press and match-up zone depend on players making timely correct decisions in response to the opposition. DIAGRAM 1: 2-3 Match-up zone defense vs. 1-2-2 offense. Few coaches can adapt and change a gameplan quite like Pitino but expect the new Iona basketball coach to favor a 2-3 matchup zone in the halfcourt and different variations of full-court man-to-man pressure. It has been a progress in work for the last three years and it was totally completed tonight. There are defensive sets that fake this trap only to force a different trapping scenario. To put it bluntly, Buckles wasn’t good at the center spot in this defense. Pitino's early zone press was different enough with players going all-out for the steal in that they didn't respond the way traditional zone presses did, so they got a lot of steals. Coaches would try to execute traditional zone press breaks and would turn the ball over because Pitino's press didn't react the same way a normal zone-press would. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. If each defender doesn’t select the correct man to switch to, most notably the side of the zone that is opposite of the double team, it will result in an either an easy basket (if the top of the zone makes the error) or a wide open three (if the bottom of the zone makes the error) for the other team. Instead of putting a guy on the inbounder and guarding up on the ballhandlers, Pitino’s teams allow the catch and apply light pressure. If it’s a winning defense, use it! SUBSCRIBE NOW $1 for 6 months. What about Pitino's "System" is so complex? College of Charleston used the same play at least 5 times to get open looks from three, taking advantage of the bad switching by our SF and PF spots in this zone. Here are some favorable zone defense situations: * Man to Man Matchup problems * 2 non-shooters who are both small. (Check the timing of this change with the first "defense is the problem" statement if you want your mind to be blown.) The defense will take the shape of the offensive set. In this case, bottom middle of the 2-3 (usually the center) calls the switch and the defense marks everyone but the guy standing in the shadow of the double team straight up. This match-up zone is the ultimate match-up zone defense because it deals with every scenario when it comes to a ball screen and all the different pick and rolls. Pitino said the Cardinals used both a matchup zone and a switching man-to-man defense. This is also why Pitino continues to say that Gorgui is our most important player and he wants 35+ minutes out of him. First, assume a 2-3 defensive alignment. x5 slides over to take away any passes to the post and help on baseline drive. 3. The Match-up zone defense combines both person-to-person and zone coverage. When the ball goes into a trap zone (corners, along baseline/sideline, etc.) At UK, Rick Pitino started his career by instituting a 1-2-1-1 zone press and paired it with a high tempo offense relying heavily on the 3-point shot. A side effect of Pitino’s defensive genius is that not all players are a quick study. With our offensive woes this season, we are a (with the exception of Russ) a completely defense-driven team. Because the match-up defense is not a straight zone defense, it becomes difficult to prepare for because not many coaches know the movements of the defensive players in the match-up defense. 5. ", Louisville-NC State preview: Cardinals look to bounce back with crucial road win, Lamar Jackson NFL Combine press conference, Louisville advances to first ACC final with 64-59 win over NC State, Louisville loses to Virginia in the most painful fashion imaginable, ACC women’s tournament open thread: Louisville vs. NC State, ACC championship game open thread: Louisville vs. NC State, ACC tournament semifinals open thread: Louisville vs. Syracuse, Louisville women to open ACC tournament against Wake Forest, Thursday afternoon Cardinal news and notes, Wednesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes, Carlik Jones earns First Team All-ACC honors, Louisville-Virginia preview: Cards look to wrap regular season with huge win, Virginia foils Louisville yet again, 68-58. The Center communicates the switch and the players are … Injuries and limited practice time with players experienced in the system compound the problem of a steeper learning curve. Why does dark chocolate covered fruit taste so damn good. I have watched more than 100 hours of footage on the Temple Match-up Zone Defense. A standard half-court defense would be your "20" defense. Pitino was one step ahead of the curve though, in that he alone pretty much pioneered the "match-up" press. The defense is adaptable when necessary. The criticism of not playing Price more early in the season is, in my opinion, a valid one; but it would have come with a cost. This came after a lot of other teams started adopting his version, most notably the early 90's Arkansas teams under Nolan Richardson. by Coach Scott Peterman. The purpose of a matchup is to get you confused, indecisive, and out of sync. Clemson defense must own matchup advantages in red zone. Neither typically turn out very well as you might imagine. The D starts off in a 2-3 zone, but has certain triggers that cause it to switch to man-to-man. This team will get better this season and since it doesn’t seem that great shooters are just going to fall from the sky to save us, it’s going to start on the defensive end. What I really wanted to show in the video is that when you run a … The inbounder is unguarded while the defenders front the ballhandlers.