Down Play – Perimeter Plays vs. Zone Defense

Perimeter Plays vs. Zone Defense

by June Daughtery - Head Coach Washington State Univ.

originally published in WBCA Offensive Plays and Strategies, a Human Kinetics book

Objective
To overload areas in the zone so the defense can't cover all options.

When to Use
Against any zone set.

Key Personnel
For this play to be effective inside, you need a piaymaker in the short corner, three-point spot-up shooters, and players who can read a spread floor and make good decisions. The 4 is your best post playmaker. The 1 is your most intelligent player, though not necessarily your point guard because players can switch places upon dribble entry or the first pass.

Execution

1. 1 dribbles to the right wing as 2 clears via the baseline to the opposite sideline halfway between the corner and the wing. The ball reverses from 4 to 3 to 2. 5 drops down the lane before cutting to the short baseline (figure 1).
2. 2 fakes a shot to draw out the low defender and then looks for 5 or 4 cutting through the midpost gap. 3 clears to the weak-side block (figure 2).
3. If nothing is there, 2 dribbles up to the wing and looks again to 5 before reversing the ball to 1 at the top of the key. 4 fills the gap on the other side of the lane as 3 moves up to the wing (figure 3).
4. 4 and 5 cut up their sides of the lane to the gap, and 3 drops into the gap between the wing and the corner. With 2, 3, 4, and 5 in zone gaps and only three defenders to cover them, 1 hits the open player (figure 4).
5. If 1 passes to 4 or 5, the other post dives to the basket looking for a quick pass. If 1 passes to 2 or 3, 4 and 5 fill the short corner and midpost gap, and 2 shifts toward the top of the key as an outlet (figure 5).

Variations

1. 1. Against a 2-3 zone, 1 can draw the top guard defender to the wing before reversing the ball. Then, as the defense shifts, she makes sure she's looking back the same way as the ball came from after the initial ball reversal to the top to stop the defense from rotating too quickly.
      
   2. Against a 1-2-2 or 1-3-1 zone, 4 is in the gap between the weak-side top defenders and the ball is pounded into her or into 5.

Points of Emphasis
Fakes, the use of the short corner, and an initial quick ball reversal are critical to this play's success. The 2 must draw the low defender with a good shot fake, which should be used convincingly after every pass thereafter. Pass fakes away from the intended target also keep the defense off balance. The 5 needs to be aggressive in shooting the ball off a drop-step jumper or in driving the baseline to the basket, recognizing that 4 should be open if the defense collapses on her. When 1 shot-fakes at the top of the key, she reads the defense and passes to the side of whichever guard bites. Finally, players on the weak side crash the boards to overload the rebounding position.