and weak-side guard is necessary. Much can be done in this early team defensive practice to show the players the effective- ness of over-sagging, of over-playing the passing lanes which will do much to make their opponents shoot over the defense. Shot charts may substantiate the coaching points in this defense. The type of material will determine the shifting policy of a coach; we have shifted freely one year with this defense and very little the next year. The con- verging feature of this defense is hard on the pivot play. Like all man-to-man defenses, the as- signments are matched according to the ability of one player to guard another. In making the assignments, the factor of keeping good offensive and defensive bal- ance is very important. Advantages: 1. More efficient because of equal matchings as to size, speed, and cleverness. 2. Can place responsibility on each player. 3. Possesses strong motivat- ing influences such as pride in good per- formances; placing one star against an- other brings out a desire to out-play his rival. 4. Strongest defense against delayed offenses or “stall” game. 5. Easy to teach. 6. Adaptable for two-timing stars. 7. Adaptable to an aggressive pressing de- fense. 8. Easier to learn strong and weak points of the opponent. 9. Regarded as the best all-purpose defense. Disadvantages: 1. May commit more fouls—more fouls lose more games. 2. Uses energy in chasing the man. 3. Not as adaptable to the fast break as the zone. 4. Danger of playing the man too much. 5. More susceptible to blocks. 6. Necessitates more shifting. 7. Must be good individual guards. The Shifting Man-to-Man Defense This was the main defense used by the Stanford team during the 1942 season. It was more adaptable to our material which averaged six feet, four inches in height. Any team with men of that size should use some defense other than a strict man-to-man. The players were fast enough to play a good fast break which was aided by excellent defensive back-board play and a constant front-line defense. Execution: This defense was massed in zone fashion as much as possible. It was hard to distinguish this defense and a zone defense, except in cases of diagonal cuts where no shifting was possible. We shifted whenever possible, in order to pre- vent the large men from chasing the smaller men as in the man-to-man. This defense resembles the old five-man de- fense with free shifting. Our assignments are more definite than in the five-man de- fense. In scouting our opponents, we learn their strength and weaknesses and know how much shifting will be necessary. Our assignments for a game are as fol- for NoveMBER, 1942 offense. lows: Center versus center, guards versus the forwards and the forwards versus the guards. The forwards may change sides or positions according to their opponent’s Usually our guards are tempor- arily. matched in this way, the big guard will take the big forward, regardless of which side he came down and the smaller guard the smaller forward. This neces- sitates the guard being able to play either side of the floor. This type of assign- ment permits the players to start off with a matched assignment. Many times there is no advantage in this plan because of Defensive Fundamentals . Shift quickly from offense to de- fense. . Locate the ball without lost time. . Be alert for interceptions. . Keep between man and goal. . Maintain good balance with arms spread. Keep knees bent and weight for- ward and low. . Wave hands to disconcert shooter. . Use voice. ; . Yell at shooter if he gets away. 10. Talk to team mates. 11. Play the ball through the man. 12. Never let a good shooter take a deliberate shot. 13. Play ball as it comes off the floor to break up the dribble. 14. Chase the dribbler to sideline or corner. 15. Be alert to shift for blocks. 16. Watch the ball, the man, and blocks. 17. Anticipate plays. 18. Always shift to loose man. 19. Block shooters away from rebound. 20. Recover rebounds. 21. Point to your man. 22. Follow detailed movements of op- ponent. 23. Don’t commit yourself easily. 24. Don’t leave feet on fake shots. 25. Make offensive man commit him- self. 26. Hurry passes. 27. Crowd offensive man after his dribble. 28. Drop in hole when your man hasn’t the ball. Retreat. 29. Don’t watch passes too closely. 30. Dominate the opponent. 31. Master defensive fakes. 32. Get rebounds if you have a fifty- fifty chance, otherwise stick to man. 33. Encourage side-line passes. Stop middle passes if possible. ao 34. Protect position against quick cut by opponent, by dropping off. 35. Determination is half of defense. 36. Good position makes defensive play easier. 37. Don’t foul—it loses too many games 38. Know how to scissor. 39. Know when to shift and when not to. 40. Go with the dribbler and use in- side arm to play the ball. 41. Play your man loose in the corners. 42. Sag off plenty on the weak side. 43. A guard should be well versed in offensive tactics. 44. Be an offensive threat —it vill worry your man. 45. Take a mental inventory of the abilities of your man. a CoN A UAWN frequent shifts, while at other times the play develops in such a way that there is a decided advantage. The guards shift with the forwards on all longitudinal blocks and with the center or other guard on all lateral plays. The defensive for- wards shift with each other on all lateral movements, thus maintaining a constant position in the front line which serves as an energy saver and also gives us a fast- break advantage. The sagging-off and converging-to-the-ball feature is equally strong in this defense as it is in the zone. Converging on rebounds is a strong point also. Advantages: 1. An energy saver. 2. Conducive to strong convergence. 3. Strong fast-break features. 4. Strong against the blocking game. 5. Players like it. 6. Strong against a short-shot game. 7. Keeps defense compact. 8. Will commit fewer fouls than in the man-to-man de- fense. Disadvantages: 1. Weak against cut- away plays. 2. Weak against diagonal cuts through defensive forwards. 3. Makes for mismatched conditions on defense. 4. Inefficient shifting leaves men open. 5. Requires more team play than the man- to-man. 6. Harder to coach. 7. Requires players of same height and ability. The Zone Defense During the seasons of 1941 and 1942, the Stanford team alternated a zone de- fense with the man-to-man and _ shifting man-to-man. This plan was based on the theory that changing the defenses at in- tervals in a game would be confusing to the opponents and force them to play at a lower rate of efficiency. In most games the results correlated with that statement. Execution: We used a 2 out of 3 in defense as illustrated in Diagrams 5, 6, and 7. The principle of the defense is simple, yet the defense is ineffective, un- less there is high degree of team play. All players must shift in unison on every ‘pass with arms outstretched and they must be alert to play the ball. It is neces- sary to talk to one another and help team mates on the borders of the zones. The arms should be kept outstretched to block passes, and wp to block shots, in order to get the most out of the rebounders. In our defense the center is the key man, since he is responsible for the zone in front of the basket and for the end line and corners. That sounds like a big assignment, but there is only one ball and the center goes to that side, in case there is an extra man there. See Diagram 7 for that play situation. When he leaves his position on that play, the weak-side guard sags into the center’s zone in front of the basket. The weak-side forward slides back into the edge of the center’s zone, taking anyone slipping in from the weak side or cutting into that part of the center zone. 11