Bob Huggins 2016 TABC Clinic Notes
The Bob Huggins 2016 TABC Clinic Notes will talk about how to implement the pressure defense that has Bob Huggins winning at West Viriginia.
Hustle keeps Bob Huggins winning at West Virginia
Bob Huggins talked with reporters prior to this past year’s NCAA Tournament on how the Mountaineer’s pressure defense works. It’s an idea predicated on using his whole West Virginia basketball team. It requires a great amount of effort on every one on your team, but you’re all going to get to play. It helps their team chemistry in a HUGE way.
West Virgina lost to Stephen F. Austin in the NCAA Tournament, but they were very under-seeded given their track record all year. They spent a portion of the season ranked in the Top 10 nationally. They played in the Big 12 Conference Championship game for the first time and improved their final win total for the third consecutive season.
Bob Huggins has taken West Virginia to seven NCAA tournaments in the nine years that Coach Huggins has been at the helm. He also has taken them to one Final Four which is a second run in his long and still growing career.
Coach Huggins has been coaching for 32nd seasons as a NCAA Division 1 head coach and his 35th year overall in coaching. He has built five different programs, wored with hundreds of players, and been on the best coaches in the modern era.
He does it with hustle and commitment to the team just like his Press West Virigina Defense. It’s a hands-on approach that has helped him all these years.
He built a dynasty at Cincinnati at one time by personally recruiting the players himself. He didn’t send his assistant.
Coach Huggins direct involvement in recruiting helped him in his pursuit of very specific kinds of players. He has coached tons of NBA prospects -Nick Van Exel, Danny Fortson, Kenyon Martin — Huggins has had very few big-name, blue-chip types.
He did recruit a couple blue chip players like Kenny Satterfield and Michael Beasley (who played for Frank Martin after Huggins left Kansas State for the West Virginia job), brought the unmistakable edge of physicality and tenacity that defines most Huggins-coached teams.
This past year’s West Virginia team had the same hard edge, pressing style that they had back in Cincinnatti. Most of the Mountaineers averaged between 8.9 and 13.7 points per game, with only Jaysean Paige and Devin Williams putting up in double-figures. Similarly, eight players logged at least 18.1 minutes per game; none went more than 27.7.
The Oklahoma loss in the Big 12 Tournament semifinal was the hardest loss. Press West Virginia had help the Final Four bound Sooners and had taken out the National Player of the Year in Buddy Hield.
Hustle, Hustle, Hustle, and outworking their opponents are how they get it done. It’s Bob Huggins mindset and it hasn’t changed.
Click on the pdf link to download the Bob Huggins 2016 TABC Clinic Notes:
0 Comments