4-on-3 Closeout Drill for Man-to-Man Defense

I'm always on the lookout for good shell-based drills for M2M defense. This one is a good one to teach help defense concepts and closeouts. If your team is playing good team M2M defense, you will always have situations where you are disadvantaged, 3-on-2, 4-on-3, as a result of your defense shifting to stop the ball, so it's always critical for your players to be able to closeout properly and split the offense properly until your teammates can recover. I got these from an older Xavier Newsletter, I like it because there is a quick turnaround so that you can get a lot of players through it instead of a lot of players standing around while 7 players play 4 on 3 for 3 minutes.

4-on-3 Closeout Drill:
1. The drill begins with four offensive players versus three defensive players. The offensive players cannot move without the ball. The drill is halfcourt only.
2. The defense must get three consecutive stops to get out. Possession of the ball by the defense equals a stop. If the offense scores or is fouled before a "third consecutive stop" occurs, the consecutive stop count returns to zero.
3. The offense must shoot on three passes or less.
4. On every catch by an offensive player, one of the three defenders, the closest one, must actively closeout and defend the ball. A defender should not have to take two consecutive passes.





For more shell drill info, check out Kevin Boyle's DVD on Building a Man Defense. Coach Boyle is head coach of St. Patrick's High Shool in New Jersey and a part of the NIKE Grassroots Basketball Program.