Dear Coaches, Players, Friends,

Today's Quotes:

"The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes." - Winston Churchill

"When nothing goes right... go left."

Today's Theme - 2-3 Zone Plays

In attacking any zone, you must have a good general zone offense strategy.  In addition, here we present several quick hitter plays for attacking the 2-3 zone defense, some from the Premium Members section.

"Carolina"
Click/tap the link.  This play is designed to attack the 2-3 zone from the back-side of the zone, using a skip pass and screening the back-side of the zone.  Your "4" often gets a lay-up.

"Vermont"
Click/tap the link.  From Louisville Women's Head Coach Jeff Walz... use this simple play to get an easy inside jump-shot (with video clip).

"22" and "33"
These plays screen the backside of the zone.  O5 starts low on the side that we are running the play to.  In "22", O1 passes to the opposite wing O3, getting the zone to shift.  O4 screens the top weakside defender while O5 screens the low weakside defender.  O3 skip passes to O2 for the open 3-point shot.  "33" is the same play but running it to the opposite side for a shot for O3 (O5 starts low on the left side, and O1 passes to O2).  

"UCLA"
We start in a 1-3-1 set.  In diagram A, O1 dribbles a little toward the right and engages the X1 defender.  O3 slides a little toward the corner, but not all the way down.  O4 steps out to the arc and gets the pass from O1 (this occupies the top X2 defender).  O4 then passes to O3, and this pass should get the outside low defender X3 to come out to defend O3.  O5 runs the baseline to the ball-side short corner and gets the pass from O3.  As the X5 defender moves over to defend O5, O4 quickly cuts inside for the quick pass from O5 and the inside shot (diagram B).  

We should have 2-on-1 with O5 and O4 vs the low middle defender X5.  But O4 has to cut quickly before that outside low defender X3 can slide back inside. Also,  O5 has the options of shooting the short-corner shot, driving baseline to the hoop, or passing to O4 cutting into the paint.