Michigan St. 1-4 Low ISO with Kalin Lucas

Most of the games today were blowouts, the most surprising was Arizona and Louisville. Arizona had the talent, athleticism, and skill to beat Louisville, but their play was lethargic, they did not look like a team playing in the Sweet 16 against the number one overall seed, but more like a regular season game.

But the Michigan State win over Kansas was a great game. MSU gets a ton of credit for coming from behind to tie then take the lead on a tough Kansas team. Ultimately, Kansas just made too many turnovers at the wrong times. It was a great finish for MSU. With the game tied, under 1 minute to go, half of the shot clock down, MSU goes with the 1-4 low isolation with their best player Kalin Lucas going 1v1,



1-4 Low Isolation:

I like the 1-4 low isolation because it gives your best player the freedom to go either way, unlike a wing isolation. Also, I like it because with the rest of the players flattened out, it really does give your best player the most open space to make a play, against at most 1 defender.

Now, should the defense choose to double to get the ball out of your best players hands, then that should mean someone else is wide open, especially if your offense is spread properly. What also works really well is running a high screen, as most teams switch all screens at the end of the game, you can get a quick-on-slow or a big-on-little mismatch.

Last but not least, should your best player miss the shot, your forwards O4 and O5 should be in great position coming from underneath to sneak in for the offensive rebound. How many times have you seen it where it wasn't the initial shot that won the game, but the offensive putback.

Summary:

The Elite Eight is set now. Michigan State is playing Louisville. A tough matchup, but the Spartans have the toughness and tenacity to face Louisville's daunting full court press. But all the matchups on paper look very intriguing and I think they could go either way. In my opinion, the safest number one seed probably is UConn. Missouri is good, but I think UConn can use Thabeet in the middle to throw over the top of their press.

If you are a big Michigan State or Coach Izzo fan, then you'll enjoy Tom Izzo's DVD on his Philosophy and Practice Drills. As always, head over to the X's and O's Basketball forum to talk with other coaches about your favorite basketball topics.