Better luck next time Hoosiers ...

One of the ugliest first half in Final Four’s history would turn into a real championship game 20 minutes too late. When any of the two teams can’t find their rhythm, it’s hard to have a good basketball game… When Hubbie Brown says he has never seen a worst Final Four game, you know there’s something wrong. When the best passing point-guard of the country, Steve Blake, throws chest passes in opponents’ hands and alley-hoop pass to invisible Maryland’s ghosts… Well you got to bench him a little. So far, doesn’t look good huh …?

However, watching the second half was more than exciting. Indiana coach Mike Davis decided to put motion away and set up his players with plays, which worked perfectly. Even though they were cold from the foul-line, the Hoosiers drained 10 of their 23 3-point attempts. With guards lighting it up from 3, the Hoosiers still couldn’t get the lead, against a solid Maryland defense. With 6 blocks and 12 steals, the Terrapins did really good on the defensive end. With Lonny Baxter and Chris Wilcox in the paint, Indiana struggled to get to the line, which wasn’t Maryland’s case. In fact, Maryland scored 20 points from the line, while Indiana only shot 7 of them. Even though Blake didn’t have a good game (0.8 AST/TO ratio), his teammate Juan Dixon gave the Terrapins a solid rhythm, scoring 18 points in 38 minutes of play.

Personally, I thought Maryland would come up with a much better offensive pattern; no, I do not doubt Terrapins’ talent. All I’m saying is that if TV didn’t show the score, any folk would’ve thought Indiana won the game (or almost won…). Expecting flex sets from everywhere and solid motion play, I saw a lost Maryland team, led by a point-guard that could barely make an inside pass. If Maryland didn’t have physical advantage, the rebounding game would’ve been a lot different (Thanks to Maryland’s bigs, grabbing 21 of 33 defensive rebounds.). Capitalizing on the fast-break, the Terrapins won with 2v1s, 3v2s and rebounding. The only easy shot out of a half-court set was seen early in the second half. Indiana opened every possible door for a blowout, but Maryland closed them all with terrible passing and bad shots.

From a Hoosiers stand point, they had an excellent second half, and fought until the end. Indiana players are always fueled with fundamentals, good footwork and toughness, which make them competitors for titles so often. With great set-plays execution and team defense, they succeeded to stay in the game, and tying the game a couple times.

28 championship plays are waiting for, only 1.60$ :

Here is a UOB Indiana play : http://www.box.net/shared/xgu1hbmli1

Enjoy,

Coach Morrow

Crunch-time !

Hi coaches,

Here are some crunch-time plays for you !

MINN : http://www.box.net/shared/7hqdat0v87
VANDY : http://www.box.net/shared/gvir41y1y9

Coach Morrow

Identity problems ?

Having an identity… As a person, as a team and as a basketball coach. For some, having an identity, your own philosophy, is one of the most important thing in the game today. Basketball is a fast game, full of opportunities. At some point, during a basketball game, you will have to make a choice, to take decisions; as a player, and, certainly, as a coach… That is where your philosophy comes into play. Before practice, during the team meeting, those key words you repeat and repeat again, rely on your game philosophy. During the game, when you get pissed off, and you feel like your heart is going to explode... That often means somebody on the team didn’t stick to your plan that relies on your philosophy.

Every Championship-Winning College teams had a clean and clear identity… Every year. When everyone knows what the coach is clearly asking for, it is easier for the players to get together and work as a team. In clinics, every great coach tells other coaches to be their-selves, not anybody else. You can’t steal identities. Personally, I would rather pay to go watch two average clearly-defined IVY-League teams compete against each other, then any NBA game (Okay, let’s say regular season games…). Watching teams that seem lost on the court, getting yelled on by a coach that wants everything, but doesn’t want to give up anything, really pisses me off. Thank God, I got to see the 2003 NCAA Championship game. You remember now? I’ll give you a clue: Orange. Still didn’t find out? Here’s another one: 40 minutes zone defense. Well, if you are still searching, we forgive you anyways, but you got to watch the Syracuse Orangemen play defense! That’s right, the 2003 Championship was opposing two strongly defined teams, in Syracuse and Kansas. The game was not even started, that I hoped Syracuse would win, and I wasn’t even a big fan of the Orangemen.

The Boeheim’ squad played extremely well on the offensive end. Yes coaches, it was NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony first and last college year, but Syracuse did win with beautiful team play. With Gerry McNamara, one of nation’s best shooting-guard, Syracuse had a strong back-court. Evidently, the Orangemen played zone defense, according to Coach Jim Boeheim’s philosophy. However, I do think that Kansas got too many points in the paint. Even though the Jayhawks had good perimeter players and great bigs, Syracuse got lucky that Kansas didn’t shoot over 40% from the free-throw line, one of the worst championship-game foul-shooting percentages ever. Even though I blame the Orangemen defense, maybe I should look on the other side and admire Kansas’ zone offense. One of the better words to describe the way they got all these looks is: SIMPLE. The Jayhawks did put on a clinic on zone offense, against one of the best zone teams in the country. Now you tell me Kansas had two 6’11 big man, with greats hands and good feet, and taking example on them wouldn’t be fair. Wrong answer. You don’t need 7-footers to run simple and efficient Kansas zone offense, because you probably don’t have 7-footers defenders in your league. If so, please send me an e-mail and I would be glad to go watch your games! With a few quick-hitters, clever passing and player movement, Kansas was 4 points away from a Championship, falling to Syracuse in a 81-78 loss.

Here is a teaser play :http://www.box.net/shared/0zz4t8u841

Click here to purchase the document for 110 cents :

Enjoy,

Coach Jeffrey Morrow

New crunch-time play : GTown Princeton set

Hi guys,

To help out a fellow coach, I decided to offer you a Princeton crunch-time play. Thompson III ran it against UConn during the last minutes of the game. Really interesting set ...

Have fun !

http://www.box.net/shared/4x9uqr94ny

Coach M

Hey coaches,

I hope you all had a good weekend, and you're ready to add some more plays to your arsenal ! To start the week off, I'm giving you those three sets !

Have fun !

St-Joe's V Nova : http://www.box.net/shared/ng9x8m81hc
San Diego St. V BYU : http://www.box.net/shared/cpx3qeccz8
Notre Dame V Louisville : http://www.box.net/shared/2exn1s9qie

Coach M


PS If anyone has some Ramsey offence stuff, please contact me at hoopjunkies@hotmail.com

The final meeting : NCAA 2004 Championship game

Hard full-court defense and relentless rebounding… What more can a coach ask for? Actually, a lot of talented teams, at the college level, that can play good collective defense and control the glass properly are often still playing in April. Now I’m not saying that any good defensive team with considerable rebounding margins are always in Final Fours, no. What I am saying is that when you got NBA-talented guys, playing great defense and going hard for every possible rebound… You might win a lot of basketball games.

As a hoopjunkie, when you think about great rebounding teams, you think Wake Forest, Michigan State, Kansas, UConn, Georgia Tech … But when two of these teams meet in the Championship, you expect World War II in the paint, every time a shot is taken. Coach, if you remember the Georgia Tech V. UConn game on April 5th 2004, you got what you expected: UConn won the war 50 to 43.

If your name is Jim Calhoun, you were very proud of your squad on that night. Actually, as a rebounding coach, you were proud of Emeka Okafor (2004 NBA 2nd overall draft pick), grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds and scoring 24 points for the Huskies. With Josh Boone (2006 NBA 23rd overall draft pick) dunking every possible put-back on the offensive end, Charlie Villanueva (2005 NBA 7th overall draft pick) cleaning the painted area and 13 rebounds off the bench, not surprising UConn benefited of extra possessions on the offensive end. Even though Connecticut is a top-rated shot-blocking program, that wasn’t a factor on that night. As much as the Huskies had a gifted front-court, as much the back-court was deadly: Taliek Brown, a clever senior guard, was setting up his teammate Ben Gordon (2004 NBA 3rd overall draft pick), mostly on half-court sets. In fact, the Huskies used a lot of their box series and flex actions to break the Yellow Jackets’ defense down.

From a Georgia Tech stand point, Coach Hewitt can’t be upset with his team performance; actually, he can be disappointed about the referees’ performance, missing lots of calls! With all due respect to Georgia Tech’s program, I do not think Hewitt’s teams are top-executing teams. However, I was shocked by the way the Yellow Jackets completed their half-court sets, and seemed like they understood the Princeton concepts. Is it because a guy named Jarett Jack (2005 NBA 22nd overall draft pick) played the point? Maybe. Anyways, it was amazing to watch Georgia Tech going up against the big and tall Huskies. We can’t ignore the fact that both teams grabbed 18 offensive rebounds. Even Though Calhoun is known for his full-court pressure, GTech’s back-court was too much for that type of game. Only problem for them is that UConn’s back-court was just as quick and talented. Was it fun to watch Georgia Tech putting full-court pressure on Ben Gordon (maybe the last time of his entire life he got pressured full !) ? Yes, I said it earlier; the only thing is that the Huskies were one of the most comfortable fast-paced teams in the country that year. Indeed, Hewitt’ squad got scored trying to pressure UConn, even if they got rewarded with some steals late in the ball game. UConn committed 16 turnovers in the game.

A great comeback was made by GTech in the second half, outscoring the Huskies with a 24-11 run with minutes remaining to the game. Final score was 82-73, giving Connecticut men’s basketball program its second Title, and in the same year, women’s basketball program its fifth Title. Notice that this only happened once in history that both teams win the same year.

As your official fast-food basketball website, you get all those plays for less than two bucks. That's right, 160 cents for 30 championship plays... Is that what they call cheap ?

2004 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP REPORT :

Have fun like we did !

Coach Jeffrey Morrow

Not sure ? Here are some free crunch-time plays :

2004 CHAMPIONSHIP TEASER : http://www.box.net/shared/bgrmkic1t7

GTECH FL. STATE [2] : http://www.box.net/shared/enqxlp67k2

More crunch-time is always better !

Hi guys,

I hope you coaches enjoy summer en take this time-out to elevate your game ! Like you already know, we deliver championship games weekly.

Until the championship day, enjoy these plays :

UNC-MARYLAND play : http://www.box.net/shared/5sbptlg89k
GTECH-FL. STATE play : http://www.box.net/shared/dhhc82tdmi

Have fun,


Coach M

2005 CHAMPIONSHIP REPORT : AVAILABLE

Coaches,

Scouting the North Carolina Tar Heels can be described in one word: RUN. In fact, Roy Williams once said: ‘’Playing fast doesn’t allow me to worry about what just happened’’. I thought I once heard Steve Smith say something like that too… Anyways, like I said in Florida’s reports, trying to break down the offensive strategies of a fast-breaking team can be either very easy, or very difficult. Some teams got dozens of secondary options, and some just have two or three basic movements then play off scratch. However, running (the right way) offensively can be a very efficient equalizer, especially for an average team. The only thing is that if you got NBA-potential players on your team, lightning-quick guards and a very competent coach… You might win championships. In fact, Roy Williams and his team did win a championship in 2005, against a fantastic Illinois team.

How amazing it is, each year, watching two college teams/coaches going head-to-head for the most prestigious title (in my thoughts) in sports. What is also exciting is watching coaches exchanging on-the-edge set plays, mixing defenses, creating mismatches with screens, etc…

And it is exactly what the Tar Heels and the Fighting Illinis did.

Scouting the Illinois Fighting Illini is a bit different though. As much as the Tar Heels seemed lost against a set half-court defense, as much Illinois were executing sharp plays offensively. Illinois had everything to make up for the lack of size: a roadrunner-fast Dee Brown, a pure shooter in Luther Head and one of the best floor-general in the game today, Deron Williams. But don’t be fooled by this rock-solid backcourt, Illinois bigs were excellent too, setting screens and rebounding offensively. One sad thing for the Fighting Illinis was their 4-man foul trouble, James Augustine. That shooting-big had problems guarding the enormous Sean May inside, getting everything he wanted on fast-break post-ups. Indeed, UNC’s center scored 26 points, all in the paint (or at the line) and added 10 rebounds to his stats sheet. If you guys want to teach your players how to set solid screens, you got to make them watch that game. Near of illegal-screening, Illinois got every shot they possibly wanted on the perimeter. Adjusting to Roy Williams 1-3-1 zone and 2-3 match-up, Illinois got the job done shooting 30% from the outside and 39% from the field. Besides that, the only important statistic was rebounding: Illinois winning the battle 39 to 34, including 17 offensive rebounds compared to the 8 ones UNC got.

Committing only one but deadly turnover in the second half, the Fighting Illinis won the second half 43 to 35, but lost the game 75-70.

Coach, we got what you need: over 30 plays from Coach Williams (UNC) and Coach Weber (Illinois), two of the best in the business! Learn how The Fighting Illini made their tenacious come-back with baseline screening sets, how UNC got all those baskets running the floor, and more! We will show you Williams’ key statistics and give you some of his personal thoughts. But wait, don’t think this report is just about the Tar Heels, because we got every single Illinois’ championship sets! The University of North Carolina is known for its hard-nosed defense, and their coach’s philosophy to destroy opponents offense… And Illinois still scored off their sets?

Yes, and we give them to you, for cheap …

TAR HEELS QUICK HITTER : http://www.box.net/shared/scpmsdf2if

2005 CHAMPIONSHIP REPORT :

Enjoy,

Coach M

crunch time : get ready

Coaches,

Get ready for the big thing...

http://www.box.net/shared/5nohdq367a


Might be coming sooner than you think ...


Coach M

2005 Championship week : surprise report !

Coaches,

Like almost every week, we offer you an NCAA Championship Scout-pro report. This week, in addition to every free plays, you will have the opportunity to get the 2005's hottest game report : North Carolina VS Illinois. Over 30 plays, informations on UNC's running-system and more !

Stay tuned, because it can be released anytime, just like a surprise !

Preview : http://www.box.net/shared/erg33cpc78

Coach M

Visit our Championship section and go get previous years reports !

THE newsletter

Coaches,

We are so proud to finally offer you a newsletter, in collaboration with basketballcoachesclub.blogspot.com !

Register now and stay updated with all the crazy hoop stuff we will give you this summer, including crunch-time plays, notes set, scouting reports and much more!

Visit us daily to get free plays and reports !

Coach M

New crunch-time play : UCLA Priceton series

Coaches,

What is the better way to finish UCLA's week off, than ending with Princeton sets ?

Today, we offer you Pete Carril's offence, in the UCLA's Princeton series.

Enjoy, and stay tuned for the next Championship report !

http://www.box.net/shared/zngax3ahaq



Coach Morrow


PS. Guys, if you want to know more about the Princeton offense, go get that tape from my friend, Coach Deforest :

Winning with the Princeton Style Offense - BasketballCoach.com