In the game against number-ninth-ranked Creighton, UConn implored 28 hard hedges (give or take a few) on ball-screens, a staple of the Dan Hurley defensive scheme. The reason for using a hard hedge is to force the primary ball-handler backwards and prevent him from getting “downhill.” When facing talented guards who can either knife through the paint or have the ability to hit off-the-dribble threes (like Zergowski), the hard hedge is a great way to disrupt the offense. Furthermore, with UConn’s consistent full-court pressure, placing added pressure on the ball-handler by hard hedging is just another way to wear a team down, something Hurley has been adamant about.
As we have seen over the past two years, Isaiah Whaley may be the best hard hedger in the Big East and even the country. His ability to force the ball-handler backwards and recover in impeccable time is second to none (full disclosure - I don’t know much about other big men’s hard hedge ability but maybe Rothstein or Mark Titus can help me out on this one).
The only downside of the hard hedge is potential wide open dunks, layups, or three-pointers allowed. The most famous example I can think of is when defenses try to hard hedge or trap Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors. A big part of the Warriors’ success was how they handled this - Draymond Green, the screen setter, would slip or do a bit of a half-roll to the free throw line, creating a 4-on-3 advantage.
With a smaller court in college and far fewer players with the same skill set as Green or Curry, the defensive scheme is a popular one and one that Hurley and co has tried to have the players master. There are two key components to a successful hard hedge.
How the Hard Hedge Works
First, there is the initial ball-screen where the on-ball defender and the screener’s defender must make sure they force the ball-handler backwards. Any split of the two results in a potential 5-on-3 and certainly a high-percentage chance at a make. The initial on-ball defender must get above the screen-setters hip and “lock and trail” the ball-handler until he can get back in front. The screener’s defender, meanwhile, must hedge hard and long enough for his teammate to recover before quickly returning to his man, the roller.
The second component is the one we will cover in-depth in this article: the MIG - the Most Important Guy. For the most part, the MIG is a weak-side defender (opposite side of the court). On the roll or slip by the screen-setter, it is the MIG’s job to sit in the paint and “tag” the roller, discouraging an easy pass into the paint for a layup or a dunk. The MIG must also be aware of the potential of a skip pass to his primary assignment and have the ability to recover.
There are two schools of thought on designating the MIG. The first is to always make it the defender guarding a certain player, usually a non-shooting threat and a non-big man. The other is based on positioning and communication which seems to be the strategy Hurley relied on for the game against Creighton. With Creighton having usually four three-point threats on the court to go along their screen-setter, UConn had to rely on constant communication and proper positioning in order to avoid easy dunks, layups, or three-pointers.
How it Worked against Creighton
Against Creighton, Gaffney, Cole, Martin, and Adams were the primary players in the MIG position, and by no coincidence they are all guards/wings who are also arguably UConn’s best defenders (on or off-the-ball). The four of them’s IQ comes into play here as knowing the scout is key. If the player they were guarding is a three-point threat, they need to read the ball-handler’s eyes (almost like a safety reading the quarterback’s eyes) and know when to fully commit to the tag versus shading towards the shooter. If the player they are guarding is a non-shooting threat or a non-threat overall, then they can fully commit to tagging the roller before recovering to their man.Bouknight was also involved in a lot of MIG possessions and for the most part was always in really good positioning. However, sometimes, he would become slightly undisciplined with his closeouts or staying on his feet. This is of course totally fair as he was literally putting the team on his back on offense. It should be reiterated that despite working his butt on offense in terms of scoring and being illegally grabbed, his on-ball defense and off-the-ball defensive positioning was really good AND he still has room to improve. For all the love he gets on offense, he is well on his way to becoming a legitimate two-way player, if he’s not already there.
Jackson was involved in one MIG possession which resulted in a Creighton dunk...Freshman learning the defensive scheme
Out of the 28 hard hedges, five ended with makes off the initial pick and roll action and almost all were wide open. While the success rate of not allowing a wide open dunk or layup is over 80%, it can be frustrating to a fan to see these possessions happen. Let’s take a look at what happened on those breakdowns and then more often what does happen in most instances.
**When looking at these clips, it may be helpful to change the "Playback Speed" to 0.75 in Settings**
Here is an initial look at Cole being the MIG in this possession -
Notice how Cole is guarding #4 in this possession but he is stationed right in the middle of the paint waiting #13 to roll into the paint. Cole's presence discourages the pass to the roller and causes an errant pass out of bounds.
Now to the breakdowns (and fixes of those breakdowns) on defense:
Breakdown #1 - 10:05 in 1st Half, Creighton Dunk
This is a tough one. Freshman Andre Jackson is in the proper positioning initially but needs to wait until Sanogo returns to his man. By leaving #13 too early, it allows for an easy dunk. It's tough to fault a freshman for this mistake as you can see, he is worried about his own man, #0, being wide open in the ball side corner. This is where being a seasoned vet or being very in tune with the scout pays off. #0 was 3-11 from three heading into the game. (Additionally, the Gaffney-Sanogo duo could probably defend this a little better as well)
The Fix - 8:15 in 1st Half, Cole MIG, Solid rotation, better O
Here, notice Cole practically sit in the paint as #32 rolls into the paint. Jackson learned from his prior mistake and correctly defends the ball over his man, switching onto #0. Carlton also does a really good job forcing #11 out towards half court and quickly returns back to the paint. Cole waits for Carlton to return to #32 before flying back out to #24, a shooter (knowing the scout). This is good rotation, just better offense.
Breakdown #2 - 6:50 in 1st Half, Creighton Dunk, No MIG
This is a great set by Greg McDermott, elevating everyone above the three-point-line and keeping two players on the far side of the court. As mentioned previously, the slip is a great counter to the hard hedge and when there is no MIG, it allows for easy opportunities. While UConn is caught in some weird matchups like Gaffney on #23, my guess is it should be either Gaffney or Cole in the MIG spot. Both are clearly far too hung up on their man.
The Fix - 2:55 in 1st Half, Cole MIG
Out of a timeout, McDermott tries to run a similar action, but notice Cole retreating to the paint rather than following #11 to the corner. He is in the MIG position even though #11 is a great shooter. Carlton also recognizes the action and stayed attached to #32 while Bouknight has far more active hands than in the breakdown.
Breakdown #3 - 7:45 in 2nd Half, Lucky
As you can see by McDermott's reaction, if #0 rolls to the hoop, he has a wide open lane to an easy layup or dunk. By the time Martin notices where he is supposed to be, it would have been too lane. UConn gets lucky. (Notice no RJ Cole in this possession)
Breakdown #4 - 7:00 in 2nd Half, Creighton Offensive Putback
This is a good offensive set by Creighton with plenty of misdirection. As #24 comes off the ballscreen and #13 rolls to the hoop, notice how Bouknight, Gaffney, and Martin are all hung up on their man and no one is in the MIG position. This is where the communication aspect is key. My guess is it is Gaffney's responsibility to be the MIG while communicating to Bouknight and Martin that #11 is coming towards the top of the key. (Notice no RJ Cole this possession)
The Fix - 6:10 in 2nd Half, Adams MIG
Notice how Adams gets into the paint while keeping his head on a swivel, noticing how Gaffney has moved to the corner and #24, a shooter, rotates to the top of the key.
Breakdown #5 - 1:05 in Overtime, Creighton Alley-oop, Dagger
Great finish by #13 on this but a couple of things here that I'm chalking mostly up to fatigue. First off, Carlton doesn't hedge hard enough. Secondly, #13 is rolling too far way from Cole for him to rotate all the way over so it is really Martin's responsibility to dig in there and "tag" the roller. He is instead too hung up on #23. Again, great finish, first game in 17 days, overtime, should have won in regulation. This is where the discipline factor comes into play.
Here are a couple looks at Martin's MIG play which along with Cole, was some of the best of the day, especially late:
5:25 in 2nd half, down 57-55
As soon as #11 comes off the dribble hand-off, Martin is in position, ready to tag #13. I love how he keeps hit feet moving and is ready to close out on #23 who had earned the respect as someone who could knock down an open three at that point.
1:10 in 2nd half, up 63-61
It is a little difficult to tell, but as #11 comes off the ballscreen and is being doubled by Whaley and Gaffney, he is looking for #13 rolling to the hoop. Martin, despite his man--#23--popping to the three-point line, stays in the paint long enough to tag the roller and discourage a pass being made. Gaffney and Whaley then force a turnover.
2:30 in overtime, down 69-68
Obviously critical point in the game here. Martin is in great position to tag the roller, waiting for Carlton to recover before closing out on #34. It is a hard high hand as #34 is a shooter and the Martin proceeds to play the drive perfectly.
One more for fun because it is by far my favorite defensive possession of the game due to circumstances. It could also be the fix for Breakdown #4, but I thought I would leave the audience with some top-notch defense and call it a day.
5:05 in 2nd half, Up 58-57, just took lead off Bouknight And-1
It starts with Cole's full-court defense. At the 4:50 mark, #32 comes to set a ballscreen for #11. Look at how all three of Gaffney, Bouknight, and Martin are in the paint - you can't even tell which one is the MIG because they all are! On the re-screen by #32, Martin becomes the official MIG and tags him as he rolls to the hoop. Once Whaley is back on #32, Gaffney's denial forces the ball to be caught way outside and allows plenty of time for Martin to recover onto #23. They then try to iso #34 onto Bouknight who will have none of it.
Hope you enjoyed the article and learned more about Hurley's defense. It is very good at the moment and is only going to get better. Also, shoutout to UConnHuskyGames for having all this great content for me to go to!
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