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Session Plan · U16 · Small group (up to 6) · 45 min

Tag Up: Crash the Glass, Own the Player You Tagged

Why it works

Sending players to the offensive glass wins extra possessions, but only if the other team can't simply run away with the miss. When every crasher gets over the top of their own defender and drives them toward the paint, that defender is the player they guard on the way back. The match-ups are set before the ball comes down, nobody has to look for a man in a scramble, and the crash itself slows the other team's run-out.

The thread through every block

  1. Shot goes up
  2. front foot, get over the top of your defender
  3. drive them toward the paint
  4. ball comes down: score it, or whoever you tagged is yours
  5. sprint to them, behind the line of the ball.

Setup. 6 players, 1 coach, 2 hoops (full court), 4 balls, bibs. Shots should be predictable ones taken from the offence's normal spots, so everyone knows when to go.

Prints on A4 for the clipboard: diagram on the left, rules on the right, and no block split across a page.

Warm · 5B1 · 7B2 · 8B3 · 9Finisher · 11

Warm-upFront foot on the shot5 min

122C1122on the shot: front foot, over the toppassive defenders, hands up
Both attackers step over the top of a passive defender and head for the paint.
  • Two pairs, one on each wing, a passive defender in the gap. The coach shoots from the top.
  • On the shot, the attacker steps forward and over the top of the defender (high side) and walks them toward the paint. Don't back off to watch the ball.
  • Two reps each, then swap with the waiting pair.
  • Theme link: the habit is going on the shot, front foot first, never backing away from it.

Block 1Over the top, into the paint7 min

122C11from the corner: over the top, not the baselinewalk him toward the paint
Same on the right. The attacker starts low and still goes over the top.
  • Adds: a live defender who boxes out. The attacker starts in the corner or on the wing; the coach shoots from the top.
  • On the shot, the attacker goes over the top of their defender and tries to drive them toward the paint; the defender tries to box out. Legal contact only: no grabbing.
  • Both sides, three reps each, then rotate.
  • Progress when: the attacker gets over the top on most shots. Then the coach shoots from different spots.
  • Regress if: attackers run along the baseline. Start them a step further from the basket.
  • Cues (questions): "Which side of your defender were you on when the ball hit the rim?" "What happened to them when you drove them under?"

Block 2Whoever you tagged8 min

1234C1122the one you tagged is yours: sprint to himget behind the line of the ball
2v2 from the shot. When the defence gets the ball, each attacker sprints to the player they tagged.
  • Adds: the turn from crash to match-up. The same 2v2: the coach shoots, both attackers go over the top. If the attackers get the miss they put it back; if a defender gets it, the defender pushes up the floor.
  • Each attacker sprints to the player they tagged and gets behind the line of the ball (an imaginary line across the floor through the ball). The first job is to stop the ball going forward, the second is to find your player.
  • Play to a score or a stop at the other end. Then the attackers become defenders and the next pair comes in.
  • Progress when: both attackers have found their tagged player before the ball crosses half-way on most possessions. Then the defence pushes immediately.
  • Regress if: attackers walk after the miss. Race to half-way: first one there wins.
  • Cues (questions): "Who was yours?" "Where was the ball when you found them?"

Block 3The flyby9 min

1234C1122defender flies out: he's your matchstay in your shot, then go
A defender who leaves early to run out becomes the match; the shooter stays in the shot, then goes with him.
  • Adds: a defender who doesn't box out and runs out instead. The coach passes to the wing player, who shoots; their defender closes out and, on the shot, may leave early and run the floor.
  • The shooter stays in their shot (finish it, don't turn away), then turns and goes with the runner: that defender is their match. The other attacker still goes over the top of their own defender.
  • Rotate pairs after three possessions.
  • Progress when: the shooter is tracking the runner within two steps on most possessions. Then the defender may run to the sideline.
  • Regress if: the shooter admires the shot. The coach calls "Shot's gone, go!" as the ball leaves the hand.
  • Cues (questions): "When did you know he was running?" "What did you do first, the shot or the sprint?"

Water2 min

Finisher3v3, tag points11 min

12123123tagged on the rise = +1, put-back = 3matched before half-way = +1
3v3 live: attack points for tagging and for being matched; defence points for scoring before they are matched.
  • 3v3, live, full court. The attack moves the ball and shoots from the three-point line; the other two go over the top of their defenders.
  • Scoring:
    • Attack 2 pts: any basket. 3 pts: a put-back.
    • Attack +1: both non-shooters over the top of their defenders when the ball hits the rim (the coach calls "Tagged!").
    • Attack +1: after a defensive rebound, all three attackers each within an arm's length of the player they tagged before the ball crosses half-way.
    • Defence 2 pts: a basket at the other end before the attackers are matched.
  • Swap attack and defence after every three possessions. Two rounds of 5 minutes; a minute to reset in between.

Huddle3 min

  • One question to the group: "Who was yours on the last possession, and how did you know before the ball came down?"

Coach notes

  • Decision errors vs execution errors:
    • Backing away from a shot to watch it (or turning your head from your player) is a decision error. Ask "where were your feet when it went up?"
    • Being under the basket instead of over the top is execution: start a step wider and go over the front.
    • Not knowing who your match is when the ball comes down is a decision error: ask "who did you tag?"
  • Common failure: the shooter turns and runs before the shot is finished. Stay in the shot, then go.
  • Common failure: everyone chases the ball and forgets the match-up. The player you tagged is yours, even if the ball bounces away.
  • One more rule, not a system: this is a way to get everyone to the glass and still know who they guard. It isn't a set play, so don't add calls, signals or lines on top of it.
  • Running it for 60: add 4 minutes to Block 3 and 9 minutes to the finisher, with one rule change for the second round: the defence must also score within six seconds of getting the rebound. Add a 2-minute huddle question at the end: "When did you decide to go on the shot, and what did you do first?"

Sources

SourceUsed for
Aaron Fearne: Sending 5 Players to the Offensive GlassMechanism (over the top of the defender and into the paint, the player you tag is your match in transition, the flyby rule), warm-up, Block 1, Block 2, Block 3
Sam Gruggen: 'Tagging Up' BreakdownsStay in your shot then go, the sprint to half-way, behind the line of the ball, Block 2 and Block 3
junior.basketball (original)Finisher scoring, rotations, the diagrams

Related

More session plans, the Session Design guide this format follows, Game-Based Practice for why every plan ends live, and blank session plan templates to write your own.

Unofficial resource. Drills are adapted from recorded coaching clinics and credited to the coaches named in Sources above; anything marked junior.basketball (original) was written for this plan. Not affiliated with or endorsed by those coaches or the organisations that ran the clinics. Full credit to every presenter.