Phil Martelli, Jr. : 2-3 Zone Defense with Gap Principles

with Phil Martelli, Jr.,
VCU Head Coach;
2026 Atlantic 10 Tournament Champions;
Bryant University Head Coach from 2023 to 2025;
2025 America East Regular Season Champions;
2025 America East Coach of the Year;
the 2023-24 season marked the first time since 1969 that a Bryant coach had won 20 games in their debut season;
Bryant University Associate Head Coach from 2018 to 2023;
2022 NEC Regular Season & Tournament Champions;
Delaware 87ers (NBA G League) Assistant Coach from 2016 to 2017;
University of Delaware Assistant Coach from 2011 to 2016;
Niagara Assistant Coach from 2006 to 2011;
Manhattan Assistant Coach from 2005 to 2006;
Central Connecticut Assistant Coach from 2003 to 2005;
played college basketball for St. Joseph’s (for his father, Phil Martelli)

Coach Phil Martelli, Jr. is a rising star in the college coaching realm. Having played for one of the great coaches in the game, his father, Phil Martelli, and with over 20 years learning as an assistant, Martelli has taken in a great amount of quality observation and is on his way to becoming one of the astute teachers of the game!

Martelli covers a lot in this video that will prime your staff to get your team to be dominant when running the 2-3 zone. You will see how Martelli switches from zone to man to confuse offenses, how he has his team defend side ball screens with the zone, how his team defends cutters within the zone, and how they defend the high post.

You will see how Martelli’s 2-3 Zone Look gets the offense to stop and to set something up while your defense can then get set.

Defending screens, trapping corners and rotating out while communicating are all shown and you’ll see what rotations are required. This video will help you see how to build your defensive principles from the ground up.

Ball Screen Touches
Defending ball screens with a slight touch on the screener gets your players to feel what the offensive player is doing. Drills are combined to include touches on the screens and close outs to build your defense. Part of the objective within this section is building communication among your players with the screener’s defender making the call on the touch. Ball screen touches can be taught on all types of screens within an offense while incorporating help defense.

Disrupt Rhythm
One defense providing many different looks will disrupt the rhythm of your opponent. The multiple looks will force an opposing coach to get out of the flow of transition and their offensive scheme. Coach Martelli shows matching up in different ways out of this defense including trapping corners and switching screens.

“We Are Five”
Martelli’s 2-3 zone rotates into man to man when the ball gets into the defense, on offensive rebounds, in trapping, in cutter situations and/or when overloading a side.

Coach Martelli Jr. provides the rules for the zone rotating into man-to-man defense. Coaches or a designated player can make the call to go into man-to-man. By learning this, you create “disruption at its finest” that will take time off the shot clock and benefit your defense!

Coach Phil Martelli Jr. presents excellent concepts that will help your team disrupt offenses and take control of the game!

79 minutes. 2025.