Devils in Detail
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ASU Basketball: How can ASU bust ‘Cuse zone defense?

By Richard Geraffo

SYRACUSE, NY - FEBRUARY 21: Matthew Moyer
SYRACUSE, NY - FEBRUARY 21: Matthew Moyer /
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Jim Boeheim‘s Syracuse Orange has one of the nation’s best 2-3 zone defenses. For the ASU basketball team, this spells major problems.

Few things on earth happen like clockwork. Each day contains things that are just guaranteed to happen; there’s always going to be high and low tide, one billion gallons of water will drop off of Niagara Falls, and Jim Boeheim’s Syracuse Orange will be one of the nation’s best 2-3 zone defenses.

For the Arizona State Sun Devils, this spells major problems.

The Sun Devils averaged an astonishing 90.7 points per game on 39 percent shooting from three through the first 13 games of the season. What propelled them to this blazing hot success?

No one could stop Tra Holder and Shannon Evans in man-to-man defense.

Early in the season, Holder (22.2 points per game, 4.5 assists per game, 4.1 rebounds per game)  was firmly in the discussion for the Wooden Award. Evans (17 PPG, 4.7 APG, 3.2 RPG) had solidified himself as the heart and soul of the new-look Sun Devils that looked ready to make a deep March run.

Against the Colorado Buffaloes on Jan. 4, everything changed.

ASU’s biggest secret was out. The secret? That the devastating Sun Devil offense could be stymied by a zone defense.

After Colorado pulled off an upset by defeating ASU in Boulder, teams had the blueprint to stop Guard U. Across the Pac-12, teams started each game in a 2-3 zone derailing ASU’s attack.

The Sun Devils suddenly became inept on offense and their season average dropped from 90 points per game to 78.3. The offense became stagnant and everything that could go wrong did go wrong for ASU.

So how can ASU defeat the nations most notorious zone defense? The defense that holds opponents to just 64.5 PPG on 44 percent from the floor?

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Speed, execution and constant off-ball movement.

The most important of the three is execution. ASU must be perfect on offense, and that goes beyond simple guard penetration.

One of the most effective ways to bust a 2-3 zone is with a 1-3-1 set. This gives the team’s best passer a chance to operate out of the high post (free-throw line area) with freedom to dictate what happens.

This attack is effective because it places the big man on the baseline with room to rebound or seal in the low post. It also places shooters in the gaps of the 2-3, and forces defenders to make a decision.

With Mickey Mitchell as the passer in this set, ASU did find success against zones, but couldn’t hit shots.

Against the Orange, it may not be a bad idea to place Remy Martin in that spot. Martin has been the Devils’ most willing and effective distributor throughout the season.

Over ASU’s last six games, Martin has scored 11.5 points per game and had more than four assists four times. Martin has clearly been the Sun Devils most effective player as of late, and putting the ball in his hands may be the best way to go.

With the defense worried about Mitchell and Martin so close to the basket, defenders will be forced to make a choice. With each choice they make, another option opens for ASU.

Let’s say 7-foot-2 Pascal Chukwu chooses to cover the high post man. Romello White, the Pac-12’s shooting percentage leader (65.4 percent), will have an easy low-post seal on one of the smaller wings because Chukwu isn’t there. It should be an easy bucket for the offensively talented White.

In the case Chukwu stays put down low, Martin can pull up from mid-range, his best spot on the floor.

If one of the two guards up top over commit to Martin, it leaves one of the extremely three-point capable Holder, Evans and Kodi Justice open on the perimeter just one pass away.

If done right, ASU could have three different ways to score on each possession.

For this to work, ASU has to move fast. If the ball sticks with one player for too long, the ‘Cuse D will have a chance to recover and dominate the much smaller ASU roster.

Another way for ASU to succeed offensively would be attacking from the corners. Against a 2-3, this is a very effective method. It starts with overloading one side with three ASU players to just two ‘Cuse defenders.

Once again this forces defenders to make a tough choice. From the overloaded corner you can do a few different things.

For starters, three is greater than two. One of the three players will always be open.

This allows room to shoot from the corner, pass to the post and collapse the D or hit a weak side cutter for an easy bucket inside. Ball fakes and quick decisions are key to success in this set.

The easiest way for ASU to have any success against Syracuse is to beat them down the floor. One thing Arizona State has been very good at is forcing turnovers.

ASU is averaging seven steals per game and forcing opponents into 14.94 turnovers a game.  If the Sun Devils can get out on the break against the Orange then they won’t have to execute in the half court.

This spells for easy baskets in transition, one of the major components of their 12-0 start to the season.

Next: Party Like it’s 2014: Arizona State is in the NCAA Tournament

Breaking the zone defense has been a big problem for ASU all season, but with a proper game plan and the ball in Remy Martin’s hands, ASU can break this trend and become what they once were, a juggernaut.

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