Muffet McGraw: Notre Dame's 2-3 Zone Defense

with Muffet McGraw,
University of Notre Dame Head Women's Coach;
2018 NCAA National Champions; 2018 AP Coach of the Year (4X recipient);
2017 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame; 2017 John R. Wooden Legends of Coaching Award;
3X Naismith College Coach of the Year; 3X USBWA Coach of the Year;
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame (2011); 2001 NCAA National Champions

Muffet McGraw opens up the doors to her practice to reveal some of the secrets from her defensive playbook! Coach McGraw has won numerous games, championships, and coaching awards over her distinguished career as the leader of Notre Dame women's basketball. You'll learn some of her favorite drills for teaching man-to-man defense as well as her philosophy, tactics, and drills for the 2-3 zone defense with instruction through whiteboard diagrams and on-court demonstration.

Practice Drills

Learn how to take four essential defensive drills and then modify them with progressive variations as you advance through the season. These drills will develop your player's abilities to close out on the ball to prevent dribble penetration toward the middle of the court.

The "Open Driver" drill will teach your players how to rotate to help their teammates on dribble penetration while covering other actions from your scouting report for upcoming opponents. You will also see how Notre Dame challenges passing lanes with their denial defense and positions themselves in their team defense with the "Jump to the Ball" drill.

Defensive Philosophy and Repetition

Notre Dame's defensive system incorporates the use of both man-to-man and zone defenses. Coach McGraw explains why her coaching staff has embraced the 2-3 zone with its numerous advantages. The responsibilities for each player in the defense will be demonstrated and broken down in detail. Through whiteboard diagrams and breakdown drills you will get a chance to learn how players are supposed to rotate in different situations.

Six drills are used to break down scenarios such as bumping to prevent a quick shot from the wing, preventing lobs and covering skip passes on the weak side of the floor, covering overloads with great shooters, and more. Coach McGraw shows how and when to utilize two options for defending the high post when they receive the ball. You will also learn different methods for trapping the low post and short corners.

Learn the defensive system that helped Notre Dame win the 2018 National Championship with the drills and strategies in this video!

89 minutes. 2018.