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Offensive Lacrosse: 2 Efficient Mid-Range Shooting Drills to Boost Production

By adam.warner - Last updated: Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Looking to improve your offensive production? Implement these efficient mid-range shooting drills to your lacrosse practices this season. Follow along as Haverford School assistant coach Mark Pittrone runs through each rep with his team at full speed. Great for midfielders and attackers alike, the following drills ensure players get a ton of reps in a short time while improving overall shooting accuracy.

Island Curl

Lacrosse teams often run shooting drills from the top down, but it’s also important to work on drills from the bottom up, especially for attackmen. In this drill, players will dodge up from the end line to about “7 and 7” or “5 and 5”, what we call the “island.” From here, players will roll back, curl off a cone, and get away a mid-range shot on the run or curling to the goal.

We will put a few cones on the island where the players need to get to. The next player in line should get moving as soon as the previous player starts his roll back to the goal. You can also add a second shot to this, for instance a curl shot right after shooting the first one.

Reinforces: Dodging from X, inside shooting, mid-range shooting, and coming from behind the goal to out front and delivering a nice accurate curl shot (with a second shot, which helps attackers be alert and think a little bit).

Figure 8 Drill

This is a versatile drill that’s helpful on seven-yard shots. It involves a lot of stickwork skills and is a great conditioner too. Also, it requires constant movement as players must catch a pass while running and then shoot it while running. Players will curl around cone and catch it right after the curl for a quick shot.

You can run this drill with as many players as you’d like to. For this example, we will proceed with four players: Two feeders and two shooters. When the players start to get tired, we will have them switch up.

You can also mix things up by going for long-range shots, mid-range shots, and tight space shots. You can even put feeders behind the goal so the players can step down and shoot it. Look to add some fakes to the shot before shooting, tight shots with both hands, and then shots using outside and inside hands. Clearly, this is a very versatile drill.

The previous clips can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD ”Efficient Shooting Drills for Lacrosse Practice” with John Nostrant. Check out more shooting videos by visiting our lacrosse library.

Compact Drills for Offensive Situations: The Yale Drill

By adam.warner - Last updated: Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Follow along with Georgetown head women’s lacrosse coach Ricky Fried as he breaks down a highly effective 4 v 3 offensive drill. This particular “small” drill places an emphasis on good decision-making, getting solid movement around the goal, and improving fundamentals in compact scenarios. Coach Fried reviews the drill using whiteboard diagrams before moving out to the field for live simulations.

Yale Drill

Get four attackers going up against three defenders. The offensive players will start in a box formation, with two players up top and two players down low near the crease.

Player Movements

As the player with the ball is getting ready to pass across, the low players should look to slide down and curl up. The ballside low player will make a C-cut or curl. Don’t go straight forward. The curl ensures you won’t cut right into the defender. Meanwhile, the offball diagonal player should stay tight to the crease. Move on a string together.

Next, hit the other up top player with a pass. As the pass comes across the top, attack the goal. Attack in a shuffling manor, not by squaring up. Shuffle towards the goal and read the defender. If no one comes at you, take the shot. If you can’t shoot, look to hit the diagonal. It’s all about reading the defense and making quick decisions.

Look to constantly stay in a box. This gives you an idea of the shape and spacing you want to maintain. Meanwhile, work on slides in and out as opposed to turning and running in straight lines.

Tips: Get movement down low. Don’t be stationary. Also, make quick, decisive, and direct passes, not lofty ones. Soft passes make the defense recover faster.

On the Field

The big key to this drill is movement. While the low attacker curls up, the diagonal attacker sets up down near the GLE. As that top cross pass is being made, the low people are on a string. The low person slides down and the other one comes up. The group starts by passing and looking. Get the feel for the motion.

Every time you get the ball, think about shooting. Be willing to take that shot if the defense holds. Defensively, stay compact and rotate opposite.

The previous clips can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “Small Drills for Offensive Lacrosse Fundamentals” with Ricky Fried. Check out more skill development videos in our lacrosse library by clicking here.

Filed in Lacrosse Newsletter • Tags: Compact Lacrosse Drills, Georgetown Women's Lacrosse, Inside the Crease, Lacrosse Fundamentals, Offensive Drills, Ricky Fried

Knight School: 3 Essential Drills to Build Team Toughness

By adam.warner - Last updated: Wednesday, June 13, 2012

In this week’s team development feature, legendary basketball coach Bob Knight leads you through three drills instrumental in building mental toughness. Coach Knight has used these same drills throughout his esteemed coaching tenure with great success.

The drills focus on ball handling, rebounding, and passing fundamentals – all while under pressure. After picking up each drill, look for ways to incorporate them into your practices this season.

Zig Zag Drill

This is a great drill to start off practice with and really get some energy going. While it’s primarily about dribbling the basketball, it also hones defensive footwork and positioning on the ball. Look for the defensive man to see if he can keep his head on the ball at all times without using his hands.

Start at one end of the floor and get into a 1-on-1 scenario. Have the defenders put their hands behind their backs and concentrate on footwork. Make sure that they get their butt down and head up. They key is to keep moving those feet and get quicker. Offensively, have players work with both hands. Once they make it to the other end of the floor, have them come right back.

Use this drill for 3-5 minutes in practice. This is one example of a drill that makes kids work and forces them to pay attention.

2-on-1 Rebounding

It’s important for kids to get after the basketball. Simply, we don’t want them to be afraid of mixing things up when going after a rebound. This is a terrific drill for reinforcing those principles.

Start off with three rebounders. The coach should put the ball up on the backboard and the kids will go after it. After a rebound, you either want a good shot or a pass back to the coach. Keep them going and see how hard they work over a two minute period. This drill is a great way to keep your players active and it forces them to get tough. As for the coaches, don’t call many fouls in the drill, either.

4 Corner Passing

Players often forget important information from a time out to a play. There’s too much game slippage or time out slippage. Therefore, use this drill to force them to be active, quick, and remembering key information in pressure situations.

Use three balls for this drill. Players have three tasks when they have the ball: Pass, return, and hand off (and go to the inside). Using four lines (in a box formation), just keep going right around the square. When you catch the pass, you return the feed and move on. Start with one ball and then work in two more balls for three total at once. Make good passes and good catches and don’t forget to go inside. Also, call out the name of the teammate you are passing to.

Next, to develop a sense of teamwork (or a reliance on each other), if you mess up (let’s say you go to the outside), everyone must do 50 pushups. That’s a way for the coaches to get you to do what you are told to do.

The previous clips can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “Bob Knight: Practice Planning and Drills for Mental Toughness.” To check out more drills in our Bob Knight catalog, click here.

Filed in Basketball Newsletter • Tags: Basketball Coach eNewsletter, Bob Knight, Issue #38, Offensive Drills, Practice Drills, Rebounding Drills, Team Drills

5 Rapid Fire Shooting Drills for a High-Powered Offense

By adam.warner - Last updated: Tuesday, May 1, 2012

This week’s team development feature focuses on improving offensive output through a series of high-intensity shooting drills and team plays. Led by Salisbury University men’s lacrosse coach Jim Berkman, the following drills focus on dodging techniques, shooting on the move, accuracy, and getting a lot of reps in a short period of time. To finish up, we’ll reveal five offensive plays from the Salisbury playbook that have paid dividends for the squad in recent years. Then look for ways to incorporate these effective plays with your own squad as well.

Shooting Drills

Hitch and Shoot – In this drill, one player will throw across for the shooter, who makes a little hitch move, quick sweep, and then shoots on cage. You should be looking to a get a good hitch every time, aiming to freeze the defenders. Try to get from 13 to 11, i.e. shooting the ball inside 11 yards after the hitch move.

Dodge, Hitch, and Shoot – This is similar to our previous drill where the passer dishes to the shooter across. The shooter then catches the ball, hitches, dodges, and fires it on cage.

Roll Back Catch and Go – This particular drills works out of Salisbury’s “22 offense.” Try to implement this drill on both the right and left sides of the field. Here’s how it works. The shooter comes across to the middle of the field, receives a pass, sprints straight for about five yards, makes a quick stutter step, and then shoots it on the run.

Roll Back, Catch, and Step Out – This is a three-man drill that reinforces Salisbury’s offense. The ball moves around the horn until a player makes a little step-out move and then releases a shot on the run.

Wing Dodge and Roll Back – This drill mimics the situation when you are driving down the side and make a dodge to try to get back to the high side. Practicing stepping away from the defender and getting your hands free. It’s key to practice this so it becomes second nature in a game. Run this drill on the right and left sides — even at the same time.

Offensive Playbook

Check out these effective offensive plays from Salisbury’s playbook and see how you can incorporate certain elements with your own squad this season.

23 – It all begins with a hard wing dodge and the ball swings to X. Next, there’s an option for an ISO from the wing. You can then swing it to the backside and get an effective pick for a quick-hitter coming off the backside. The player that picks should open to the ball.

24- The key to this play is picking the picker on the inside. Swing the ball to X, bang it right back, and then look inside for a shot.

25 – The “25″ play involves a double pick for a lefty coming off. Then there’s a re-pick on the inside for a curl. If nothing develops from those looks, you can take those guys to the ball side and swing to the backside for an ISO centering on the middie stepping off the crease.

Bishop – The key here is a wing undercut and backdoor option for a player who’s opening up the backside.

Bluejay – Finally, with “Bluejay”, there’s a double invert behind and you can make it look like you’re setting a pick with an attackman and swinging it to the backside. You then have a pick-the-picker play available on the crease.

The previous clips can be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “How to Create a Great Shooter and Individual Player” featuring Salisbury coach Jim Berkman. To find more shooting videos, check out our extensive lacrosse catalog.

Filed in Lacrosse • Tags: Inside the Crease, Jim Berkman, Offensive Drills, Salisbury University Lacrosse, Shooting Drills, Skill Development

3 Fast Break Drills for an Explosive Offense

By adam.warner - Last updated: Wednesday, April 18, 2012

University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma believes that teams should focus on drill work that translates directly from practice to the game. The following drills place an emphasis on fast break basketball and the transition game and replicate common game situations. The drills are also a staple of Auriemma’s practices and should make for a tremendous addition to your own this season.

Fast Break Layups

Get two lines of players just beyond half court. The player with the ball should be looking to get to the top of the key in two dribbles as fast as he/she can. Once there, stop, and then dish off to a wing player who’s making a hard cut and layup.

After a while, put a coach out there at the foul line and have them stand there. After the dish, the passer must run around the coach to the opposite side of where he passed it and go rebound the ball. Try to simulate like it’s a game situation. Rebound, outlet, and head to the back of the line.

Tip: Stop and go around the coach to prevent the charge.

Goal: Hit 10 straight with no misses, bobbles, turnovers, or fumbles. Then switch to the other side of the court.

Pull-up Jumpers

Start with three lines at half court. This drill is simply a 3-man weave for a pull-up jump shot. Be sure to shoot from just above the low block. Do not go in the lane. Also, get a coach positioned on the block to make sure of no charges. Always bank it in from this angle.

Meanwhile, the other two guys in the drill are fighting for the rebound (going 1-on-1) and boxing out. Whichever player gets the rebound, he/she must put it back up and in the basketball. Switch lines when complete. Also, don’t score twice, only go for the basket on a miss.

If you have 14 players, the goal should be to make 14 bank shots and then switch sides. Hit 14 more and then move on. This is a great drill for boxing out, offensive rebounding, shooting, and defensive rebounding. Plus, you can run this five minutes into practice and you’ve already gotten your guys warmed up. If you’re in a bad mood, go for 14 straight. How many in a row can your players get? All the while, this drill also puts a lot of pressure on the guys. You can quickly find out who can handle the pressure early in the season.

Long and Short Drill

The Set-Up: Start out with three lines. The first line is under the basket, the second line is near midcourt near the sideline, and the final line is on the opposite mid-court area near the sideline.

The Action: Start by throwing the ball off the glass, outlet to the nearest teammate up court (who is coming to meet the ball). That player will take the pass, turn, and pass to the other player who is cutting to the opposite hoop for the layup in stride. There should be no dribbles, no fumbles, and no misses. Simply catch the ball and lay it in.

The Finish: Next, he second passer runs to the top of the key and then starts heading the other way with the same three players. You’re now looking to get out on the break using the entire floor. Meanwhile, the big guy who first passed the ball must sprint all the way down and catch the layup on the other end before being the outlet man again. This time, he outlets to the player who just hit the layup.

Tip: Time the run for the transition. Timing and spacing are crucial.

The previous clips can all be seen on Championship Productions’ DVD “Geno Auriemma: Dynamic Offensive Practice Drills.” To check out more drills and set plays, simply visit our basketball library.

Got any fast break drills that work well for you and your squad? How do you get your players ready for specific game situations (i.e. transition defense, etc.)?

Filed in Basketball • Tags: BasketballCoach Newsletter, Fast Break Drills, Geno Auriemma, Offensive Drills

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