John Brannen (2)

Match Up Press Defense : Full Court & Half-Court Teach your players a defense that controls tempo, tires opponents, and disrupts rhythm. University of Cincinnati head coach John Brannen used his full-court pressure defense to take Northern Kentucky to the NCAA tournament in its first year of eligibility in 2017. NKU was the Horizon League champion that season and Brannen was the league’s Coach of the Year. The big reason for his success was his defense. In this video, Brannen shows you three different variations of full-court pressure and how to develop a solid half-court defense. You will witness a series of drills that Brannen uses in order to do so. Your players will learn to develop an explosive first step and stay in front of ball handlers. You will also see how you can create more turnovers and chaos for your opponent. Three Variations of Full-Court Pressure Two of Brannen’s presses are based on match-up zone principles allowing for players to learn consistent responsibilities and the ability to adapt to opponent’s press breaks. Both presses also provide a unique twist to confuse opponents. The third press is based on man principles. White Press: Force opponents to the “coffin corner” and create trapping opportunities Blue Press: Force the ball out of a talented player’s hands 55 Tough Press: Uses man-to-man principles to increase pressure on denying the inbound pass. This is designed to get a 5-second call or a steal off the inbound pass. Match Up Press Defense Breakdown Drills Coach Brannen shows you 10 practice drills that teach players to become proficient full-court defenders. Four of the drills teach the proper defensive stance and correct lateral movement. Defenders work on that explosive first step and how to cut off the dribble. The Box Drill combines all of the skills into one drill. The six remaining drills break down the various concepts of Coach Brannen’s pressure defense. The 4-on-4 Full-Court Shell Drill teaches players how to align on the floor, uses stunts, and slow the dribble. The Circle Trap Drill demonstrates how players should trap and how defenders should anticipate the next pass and pick it off. Half-Court Man-to-Man Defense What players learn in Coach Brannen’s full-court scheme carries over into the half-court. Defenders learn how to align to take away gaps in the defense. Brannen uses six drills to teach the half-court defense. Players learn additional concepts like stunting, closing out, pressuring with active hands, baseline help, and more. Individual players train to become elite defenders all the while building the foundation of a stellar team defense. Coach Brannen’s video is for any coach looking to build a championship pressure defense. Rent this match up press defense DVD today.

Transition Offense Into the 4-Out 1-In Motion Offense University of Cincinnati head coach John Brannen has built all of his teams’ identities on playing fast on offense and having a constant attack mentality. Brannen led Northern Kentucky to the NCAA tournament in the school’s first year of eligibility. Now at Cincinnati, Brannen uses the same pace and space concepts that have produced a ton of wins. In this transiition offense video, Coach Brannen shows you how to build an aggressive, fast-paced transition offense. It all starts on the defensive end. Transition Offense Philosophy At the core of what Brannen believes on offense is a simple three-word mantra: Sprint, Space, and Share. Teams have to embrace playing fast in transition and in the half-court offense. Anytime a player is in doubt, all he has to remember is sprint the floor, space properly, and share the basketball. Brannen uses metrics for certain drills and in games to help improve transition decisions and success. He shows you how a few key stats can help improve shot selection. He also goes through which players have the “license” to shoot three-pointers in games. The whole idea is to mold the transition offense so that players better understand their roles in it. Doing so will help everyone be more successful in transition. Setting Up Transition Offense  On a missed shot, the ball can only be brought up the floor by what Brannen calls “bust out guys.” These are players with a certain assist-to-turnover ratio. Any player not designated a bust out guy must outlet the ball to someone who is to bring the ball up the floor in transition. Brannen’s fast break isn’t numbered either like traditional breaks. Each spot must be filled though and players learn each of the spots to be filled. To teach transition, Coach Brannen uses the Coach Izzo Break Drill. This works on sprinting up the sideline and getting layups, post-ups, and three-point shots in transition. Building the Offense The foundation of the offense begins with half-court penetrate and pitch drills, which come from former Oklahoma City head coach Billy Donovan. The drills are designed to attack the paint and kick the ball out for open three-pointers. With proper spacing and movement, the offense begins to heat up. From there Coach Brannen continues to build out a fast-paced motion offense that runs smoothly even after the transition attack has ended. Rent this transition offense DVD today.