brad underwood
How 8 Teams Pulled Off Big Upsets in the Tournament MARCH 28, 2016OCTOBER 2, 2016
WES KOSEL
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How 8 Teams Pulled Off Big Upsets in the Tournament by Wes Kosel There were a lot of great upsets in the 2016 NCAA Tournament. There were also a lot of great moments – Wisconsin hitting a buzzer beater to beat Xavier, Notre Dame tipping the ball in at the end to beat Stephen F. Austin, and Texas A&M coming back from 12 down with less than a minute left against Northern Iowa. All of these moments are what makes March Madness so great. In this article, we will dive into how eight teams busted brackets and pulled off huge upsets. (I limited it to eight putting only #11 seeds or higher into the mix, Wisconsin over Xavier could have been put down as an upset, as well as VCU winning in the first round, etc.) The upset reviews are in alphabetical order, it’s up to you to decide which one was the biggest upset. Included with each review is a video playbook. The full PDF playbook of Upset X’s & O’s can be downloaded at the bottom of the page.
#12 Arkansas – Little Rock vs. #5 Purdue I was fortunate enough to be at this game in Denver. Little Rock was hanging in it the entire game, but it felt like the Trojans just didn’t have enough to come back and beat Purdue. Purdue seemingly started playing “not to lose”, and Little Rock started gaining momentum quickly. In a flash, the Trojans forced the game into overtime and pulled off the upset.
#11 Gonzaga vs. #3 Utah It wasn’t a huge surprise that Gonzaga beat Seton Hall in the first round of the tournament, but not many people had the Zags defeating Utah in the second round. For one, people questioned the bigs for Gonzaga against Jakob Poeltl. Second, they weren’t sure how well the guards from Gonzaga would match up against Utah’s defense. Mark Few and his Bulldogs proved everyone wrong, and handled the Utes easily.
#13 Hawaii vs. #4 Cal If you listened to any of the sports talk shows before the tournament, almost everyone told you to watch out for Cal’s pro talent. I even heard several experts say that Cal was the most talented team in the tournament field. Hawaii didn’t get the memo, however, and beat Cal in an upset that no none saw coming. The Rainbow Warriors did a good job using their length and speed at the big position.
#15 Middle Tennessee State vs. #2 Michigan State Perhaps the most shocking of upsets, Middle Tennessee State was the ultimate bracket buster beating a strong championship contender in Michigan State. Myself, and many others, had the Spartans winning it all. I mean, why wouldn’t you? Tom Izzo’s team has balance, toughness, and a star player. Coach Kermit Davis had something to add though, his Blue Raiders were tough and balanced too. MTSU was able to pull off this upset with remarkable shooting and rebounding.
#11 Northern Iowa vs. #6 Texas This wasn’t a huge upset by the true definition, but it was still a small conference vs. big conference battle in favor of the Longhorns. Plus, Shaka Smart was the expert in upsets, right? Coach Ben Jacobson led his Panthers to perhaps the most thrilling game in the tournament winning on a half court buzzer beater. Unfortunately, Northern Iowa was on the other end of a crazy game against Texas A&M in the Round of 32.
#14 Stephen F. Austin vs. #3 West Virginia
This upset had the most traction, as SFA had done it before with a tournament upset over VCU a couple of years ago. Brad Underwood was and is a hot coaching name, and Oklahoma State jumped on board hiring him as the next head coach. This game had a lot of storylines behind it, Underwood and Huggins coaching together, similar defensive styles, and a great senior player for the Lumberjacks in Thomas Walkup. The upset over WVU (and the game against Notre Dame) proved to be everything we wanted out of a Cinderella matchup. (This video is much more comprehensive and includes video from Stephen F Austin’s last four games).
#11 Wichita State vs. #6 Arizona Once again, Wichita State by themselves aren’t really an “upset team” this season, but going up against Sean Miller’s Arizona powerhouse put the Shockers back into the underdog role. The Shockers controlled this game from the tip, and made Sean Miller sweat a little bit (or a lot). Gregg Marshall proved why he is one of the best coaches in college basketball winning in convincing fashion over the Wildcats.
#12 Yale vs. #5 Baylor This game was a favorite upset pick coming into the tournament, but how many thought it was actually going to happen? Everyone knew the formula: Yale needs to shoot well against Baylor’s zone. However, Yale did something even more impressive, they out-rebounded the huge, athletic Baylor Bears. Yale ran some great actions against the zone, including some horns sets.
All of these upsets were impressive, and some coaches really put their names on the map. Brad Underwood has already made the jump to Big 12 Oklahoma State, and it looks like Chris Beard (Little Rock) may be making a jump soon as well. Just two seasons ago, Beard was coaching at Division II Angelo State in Texas and now is one of the hottest names in college basketball. Eran Ganot and James Jones built up their resumes, and with some more success in the coming years they could make a jump to bigger jobs. Mark Few, Gregg Marshall, and Ben Jacobson added to the great history of their programs. If any of those three want to leave, any Big 5 Conference school would love to have them. Lastly, Kermit Davis made the most of a tournament appearance with perhaps the biggest upset we have seen in the NCAA Tournament. We have seen many upsets with #15 seeds winning, but rarely against as strong of a favorite to win the whole thing as the Spartans were. The Blue Raiders did so by sticking to the game plan and making the most of their opportunity. That’s why we play the game, right?
Click here to download the Upset X’s & O’s Playbook! (https://www.dropbox.com/s/duw9iiu08p7dnvs/Upset%20X_s%20%26%20O_s%20%20The%20Top%20Upset%20Teams%20of%20the%20NCAA%20Tournament.pdf?dl=0) This playbook features plays from Little Rock, Gonzaga, Hawaii, Middle Tennessee, Northern Iowa, Wichita State, and Yale.
Click here to download the Stephen F. Austin Playbook! (https://www.dropbox.com/s/i7t2fajf39ygyl3/Upset%20X_s%20%26%20O_s%20%20Brad%20Underwood%20SFA%20Lumberjacks%20Playbook.pdf?dl=0) This 20 page playbook features a comprehensive breakdown of Brad Underwood’s offense at Stephen F. Austin.
Inside the Stephen F. Austin Offense – Upset X’s & O’s MARCH 22, 2016SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
WES KOSEL
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Inside the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks Offense of Coach Brad Underwood by Wes Kosel This article was originally featured on Fast Model Sports. A lot of fans just assume Stephen F. Austin came out of nowhere, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Since 2007, the Lumberjacks are 227-65, they’ve won the Southland Conference regular season 5 times, won the Southland Conference Tournament 4 times, appeared in the NCAA Tournament 4 times, and have a total of 3 conference losses in the last 4 seasons. The current head coach, Brad Underwood, took over in 2013 after Danny Kaspar left to take the Texas State head coaching job in San Marcos, TX. In Underwood’s three seasons in Nacogdoches, he has put together a 89-14 record and hasn’t lost more than 6 games in a single season. Underwood’s Lumberjacks also have appeared in the NCAA Tournament each of his three seasons, winning against #5 seed VCU in 2014, losing to #5 seed Utah in 2015, and upsetting #3 seed West Virginia in this year’s tournament. The Lumberjacks were close to another upset, but Notre Dame was able to tip in the ball on a rebound at the last second.
The Numbers Don’t Lie The Lumberjacks aren’t just impressive in the win/loss column, they dominate the stat line too. In 2015-2016, the Lumberjacks ranked #1 nationally in scoring margin (16.9) and turnover margin (6.5), #2 in assists per game (18.7), #7 in steals per game (9.1), #8 in assist/turnover ratio (1.55), and #11 in scoring defense (63.3 ppg). Coach Underwood’s Coaching Path Coach Underwood played at Kansas State and then started his head coaching career at Dodge City CC in Kansas. He then went to Western Illinois as an assistant and Daytona Beach CC as a head coach before going back to his alma mater as an assistant coach in 2006. He coached under Bob Huggins and Frank Martin at Kansas State, and then went with Frank Martin to South Carolina in 2012. After one season with the Gamecocks, Underwood took the head coaching job at Stephen F. Austin. As a student of Bob Huggins’ philosophy, Underwood plays an uptempo style centered around pressure defense. In the half court, his players are great at denying passing lanes and getting deflections. The Lumberjacks led the country in turnovers forced this year with 18.56 per game. Chalk Talk – X’s & O’s The Lumberjacks run a 2-3 high (Princeton/Michigan type set) offense with tons of pinch post actions and quick hitters. The benefit of this offense is that the players are interchangeable, and the plays are hard to scout as so many options are similar. In the video below, you will see the following situations and plays. Offense – Man 2 Man Pinch Post Offense (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124040/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post) Pinch Post Flare (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124041/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post-Flare) Pinch Post Double Handoff (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124042/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post-Double-Handoff) Pinch Post Pin (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124043/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post-Pin) Pinch Post Pin Lob (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124044/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post-Pin-Lob) Stagger Pinch Post (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124045/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Stagger-Pinch-Post) Exchange Pinch Post Bump (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124046/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Exchange-Pinch-Post-Bump) Push Stagger Option (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124047/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Push-Stagger-Option) Double Flares (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124048/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Double-Flares) Quick Lob (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124049/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Quick-Lob) X Over the Top – Shallow Flash X (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124050/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Shallow-Flash-X) Baseline Out-of-Bounds BLOB Post Rub (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124054/play-Stephen-F-Austin--BLOB-Post-Rub) Box Elevator (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124056/play-Stephen-F-Austin--BLOB-Box-Elevator) Offense – Zone Zone Triangle (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124059/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Triangle) Zone Lob (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124057/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Lob) Zone Ball Screen (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124058/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Ball-Screen) Press Break Lumberjack Press Break (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124060/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Press-Break) Defense to Offense The end clips show how good the Lumberjacks are at forcing turnovers as well as getting rebounds and pushing up the floor fast.
Pinch Post The number of counters and options that the Lumberjacks run out of a pinch post set is impressive. Creating an overload on one side of the floor and running the ball off of multiple actions at the pinch post gives Coach Underwood’s team a lot of space when trying to score. The initial cuts in the offense have to be guarded as the second cutter ends up in the post, and this action creates space for the player at the pinch post. The Lumberjacks often are able to throw to the elbow for a shot or a quick handoff. They also have built-in counters off of this set including a pin down, flare screen, and lob play.
(http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124040/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Pinch-Post) Basic Zone Offense Brad Underwood likes to keep things simple. And it makes sense… It’s working, why change? Stephen F. Austin runs a ton of pinch post actions against man to man defenses, and against zones they run a triangle motion the majority of the time. A lot of teams get tired of chasing the Lumberjacks through their pinch post offense, so many coaches opt to play zone (or at least a combination of man and zone) against SFA. The Lumberjack players are well coached, however, and are patient against zones looking to attack gaps and get layups. The basics behind Underwood’s zone offense is two players in the slots (lane lines extended) and three players working a triangle around the zone. They often start with a 1-4 high set to get into the triangle motion, and once they are in it the three triangle players are free to work the corners, short corners, blocks, high posts, and top of the key. The triangles are often formed on the right or left side of the floor (corner/block/high post). In the diagram below, you can see the triangle formed by the SFA players.
(http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124059/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Triangle) Zone Quick Hitters The Lumberjacks are usually pretty efficient against zone defenses, but Coach Underwood has put a couple of quick hitters in to get some different scoring looks. The first zone quick hitter is a ball-screen option (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124058/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Ball-Screen) that uses some misdirection action to post up the middle zone defender. The second zone quick hitter is a lob (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124057/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Lob) that has worked several times this season. Zone Ball Screen (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124058/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Ball-Screen)
(http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124058/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Ball-Screen) Zone Lob (http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124057/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Lob)
(http://www.fastmodelsports.com/library/basketball/fastdraw/124057/play-Stephen-F-Austin--Zone-Lob) Looking Ahead With the success the Lumberjacks have had, it’s no surprise that Brad Underwood will be the next head coach of the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Being a former K-State Wildcat, he knows the Big 12 well and has experience recruiting Texas players (which every Big 12 school goes after). As for Oklahoma State, Underwood has the recipe to be successful for a long time and so does whoever takes over next for the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks.
Click here to download the SFA Lumberjacks Offense Playbook (https://www.dropbox.com/s/i7t2fajf39ygyl3/Upset%20X_s%20%26%20O_s%20%20Brad%20Underwood%20SFA%20Lumberjacks%20Playbook.pdf?dl=0)
NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Lumberjack Drift MARCH 20, 2016SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
WES KOSEL
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NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Lumberjack Drift Here is a set play called by Brad Underwood against Notre Dame. The guard acts as if he is cutting off of 5 but pops back out to get the ball.
Click here to download the PDF! SFA Lumberjack Drift (https://www.dropbox.com/s/ku8ugywkjyi2rpq/NCAA%20Tournament%20Sets%20%20SFA%20Lumberjack%20Drift.pdf?dl=0)
NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA BLOB Flare MARCH 20, 2016SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
WES KOSEL
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NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA BLOB Flare SFA used this set to get an open 3 point shot out of a baseline out of bounds situation. After getting the rebound, the Lumberjacks go into their basic pinch post set.
Click here to download the PDF! SFA BLOB Flare (https://www.dropbox.com/s/f1rq70vn77bk4ah/NCAA%20Tournament%20Sets%20%20SFA%20BLOB%20Flare.pdf?dl=0)
NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Zone Triangle MARCH 20, 2016SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
WES KOSEL
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NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Zone Triangle A lot of teams play zone against SFA because of their efficiency running their man offense. Against zones, Coach Underwood likes to have two players up top and the other three form a triangle (corners and top of key). The player work freely in this triangle into openings and gaps.
Click here to download the PDF! SFA Zone Triangle (https://www.dropbox.com/s/a6cd8ilteb34v5z/NCAA%20Tournament%20Sets%20%20SFA%20Zone%20Triangle.pdf?dl=0)
NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Exchange Pinch Post Bump MARCH 20, 2016SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
WES KOSEL
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NCAA Tournament Sets – SFA Exchange Pinch Post Bump Here is a counter to the Pinch Post play used by Stephen F. Austin. In in this play, the guard bumps the big to the post and becomes the pinch post man.
Click here to download the PDF! SFA Exchange Pinch Post Bump (https://www.dropbox.com/s/nx5r3ndbdoouqs3/NCAA%20Tournament%20Sets%20%20SFA%20Exchange%20Pinch%20Post%20Bump.pdf?dl=0) OLDER POSTS BLOG AT WORDPRESS.COM.
