with Matt Lewis,
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Head Coach;
2019 NCAA Division III National Champions;
2019 WIAC regular season champions;
2019 NABC Division III Coach of the Year;
2019 D3hoops.com Coach of the Year;
2019 DIII News Coach of the Year;
2019 Glenn Robinson National Coach of the Year;
career win percentage of .906 entering the 2019-20 season (best among all active NCAA men's basketball coaches)
Install a defensive system that will help you lead your league in critical statistics such as defensive field goal percentage, defensive 3-point percentage, and rebounding margin!
UW-Oshkosh head coach Matt Lewis utilized his modified pack line defense all the way to winning the 2019 NCAA Division III National Championship game. This approach will advance beyond the basic principles of the pack line to tailor your defense each game to optimize your system's ability to lock down each and every opponent. In this video, you will learn strategies and drills for how to take your pack line defense to the next level.
Transition Defense
No half-court defense stands a chance at being effective without an organized system for neutralizing the fast break and getting defenders matched up. Coach Lewis breaks down the ins and outs of his system for setting the defense in transition. You will learn how to assign players roles that best match their strengths, as well as how to slow down the ball early and load support defenders to crowd the court. Training players with these specific rules will help you build a wall around the paint and force tough shots early in the shot clock.
Closeouts
Great team defenses possess savvy defenders who understand how to alter their approach to different opponent match-ups. Closeouts are already a challenging enough skill to master - thankfully, Coach Lewis explains how his team tweaks their closeouts to the skill-set of their opponents to remove unnecessary challenges. Three practice drills will help your defenders perfect their closeout and on-ball defense technique while learning how to vary their aggressiveness to three different levels of player. The "2-Man Ball Screen" drill is a unique way of teaching your defenders to closeout in relevant game situations.
Protecting the Paint
The pack line's strengths of limiting dribble penetration are put to the test versus modern offenses that are designed to get to the rim. As offenses have evolved, Coach Lewis has also found new ways to upgrade his defense to excel.
You'll learn how you can adjust your off-ball "gap" positioning based on the threat created by the ball handler and the talents of your match-up. Specify how hard your players should stunt to help on dribble penetration based on their assignments in the game. Lewis also explains how he defends baseline drives to minimize rotations as much as possible. You will see how you can implement these concepts through the "3-vs-3 Gauntlet" drill that challenges defenders to prevent paint touches.
The ball can also enter the paint through post feeds. You will see how to deny the post to create a moving target and force a catch outside the paint. Coach Lewis goes into detail on how to cut off angles for an easy score once the post does receive the ball. You'll also discover how perimeter defenders can adjust their level of aggressiveness in choking down on the post.
Defending Screens
A unique twist to this man-to-man defense is Coach Lewis' emphasis on switching screens. You will learn how to force the opponent to curl off-ball screens to where a teammate will be waiting to take them with a switch. This strategy will neutralize slips while smothering great perimeter shooters.
Lewis also shows how to "weak" ball screens that you do not want to switch. This tactic is a great way to force opponents to beat you without being able to operate to their strengths. Finally, you'll learn how you can teach these ball screen concepts through the "Van Gundy" drill that will get your team defense playing through multiple pick & rolls in a possession.
This video from Coach Lewis will give you the additional details you need to truly make your defensive system as dominant as it can be!
72 minutes. 2020.