The East Region #1 Seed Villanova Wildcats are lead by senior guard Josh Hart and his powerful jumpstops. 

The top seed in the East Region belongs to the defending national champion Villanova Wildcats (31-3, Big East Champions). The ‘Cats are lead by senior guard Josh Hart (18.9 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.1 apg) and Hart may be the most fundamentally sound player in major college basketball.

As a team, Villanova exhibits outstanding fundamentals and decision-making and Hart is the quintessential example. Hart’s signature weapon is a drive to the lane and a powerful jumpstop as demonstrated in the video clinic below.

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Video Clinic – Josh Hart Jumpstops:

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Jumpstop Pointers

Here are some things to emphasize when teaching players this technique:

• Anticipate prior to the catch – If catching on a fill or from an inside-out pass players should read the position of the defender and attack their position and momentum without hesitation.
• Keep On Body – No rounded drives! Maintain pressure and leverage on the defender by keeping him/her on your body.
• Stick the landing – not only should the player come to a powerful stop, but they should come to the proper stop be it a true jumpstop or an outside foot-inside foot stride stop.
• Pivot with poise – Gather, and go up into the hop jumper if you find yourself in a pocket of space. If not, pivot and look for second cutters.

Other observations from Hart and Villanova’s technique:

• Most often Hart uses a crossover step with his foot that is furthest from the defender as the pivot foot and catches in a “sprinters stance” sweeping the ball to create a small advantage
• Seeing a secondary defender’s chest in his driving line prompts the jumpstop
• Avoids contact, charges and low percentage floaters by gathering and getting vertical
• Hart does not hold the ball when he has an advantage. He does not allow “basketball camp closeouts” to neutralize the advantage (3:29)
• Hart has a keen understanding of where to attack the gaps and layers of a zone defense (4:16)
• Reverses out using the foot furthest from the defender when he’s “walled up” on a drive (5:39)
• “See chest, Think pass” – transfer the advantage early (7:12)
• Jumpstop allows Hart to find the second cutter (7:48)

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March 11, 2017 – New York, New York, U.S. – Villanova’s guard Josh Hart #3 penetrates toward the basket as Creighton’s guard Marcus Foster #0 tries to defend in the first half during the Big East Tournament Championship game at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Villanova Wildcats defeated Creighton Bluejays 74-60. Duncan Williams/CSM(Credit Image: © Duncan Williams/CSM via ZUMA Wire)