What We Saw (And What We Didn’t) Against Longwood
November 15th, 2009 by Cvillehoops13
Defense – On D, the Packline style made its debut. On almost every possession UVa set up with Packline depth and responsibilities – there were some positives such as transition defense and the play and positioning of a few of the guards (Landesberg and Farrakhan in particular) and there were some negatives in the execution of help and baseline responsibilities. Bennett used many of these mistakes as teachable moments during the game – both during timeouts and when players subbed in and out. Having these players able to see these mistakes on film with a teacher like Bennett should prove invaluable moving forward.
Offense – While the D unveiled an early version of Tony Bennett’s Packline, the offense rarely showed the Blocker/Mover, only giving it a few sets in each half. While the idea of a new coach coming out in his first game and attacking a smaller in-state foe with a spread offense might give some Cav fans nightmares, it worked very well for Bennett on Friday night. The team was encouraged to push the ball, look for openings in the secondary break, and then go into a 41 set (4 players on the perimeter with one post player setting up ball side). UVa’s speed advantage regularly used this look to get to the lane and either finish, or take advantage of Longwood helping and dish to the post or kick the ball out for an open 3-pointer. There were a few 32 sets, some pick and roll and some motion sets as well, but Coach Bennett kept the strategy simple and his players responded by executing fairly well and playing with confidence.
Blocker/Mover – In the first half while Mustapha Farrakahn was at the point, the Cavs ran two series out of the Blocker/Mover. In the second half, the short period in which Jeff Jones came alive occurred during a few Blocker/Mover sets – other than those 4-5 plays it was absent from the Longwood game.
Given that Coach Bennett was faced with the obstacle of introducing a new defensive style and concept, finding his rotation, and facing the pressure and expectations that come from a debut game – Bennett’s strategy fit the circumstances perfectly. It is important to remember that this was Tony Bennett’s first game ever as a head coach in which he didn’t recruit the players he was coaching. Coach Bennett is right that this team has a lot to improve upon, but there is a lot to be positive about heading out of the first game of his tenure as well.
