Brian Gregory: Five Defensive Principles for Success

with Brian Gregory,
University of Dayton Head Coach

Coach Gregory focuses on his 'Flyer Five' - five keys to building a successful team defense. These five keys are transition defense, eliminate dribble splits, contest shots, block out and limit opponent to one shot, and take the opponent out of set plays. These five items serve as a guideline for building a practice plan every day. Gregory's program sends four to the offensive glass, yet getting back on defense to defend the goal. His favorite drill to develop this is the 3 Line Drill, which creates a 2-on-1 situation. Progressions to the drill expose your team to 3-on-2 and 4-on 3 situations. Moving to the half court, Gregory introduces a drill to prevent dribble splits. The goal is to get to your spot as the receiver catches the ball. Gregory presents two drills to work on contesting shots. Rebounding is a mentality that must be emphasized every day. Gregory hammers this mentality daily and is a part of every drill in practice. The final key is taking the opponent out of their set calls. Using three calls - Jam, Trap and Fire - the Flyers are able to initiate pressure with their defense. In a half court setting, he demonstrates drills to work on these three schemes. This is a unique way to present a total team defensive system.

73 minutes. 2006.

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