4th & final night of Husson’s women’s basketball team’s “Read & React Offense”, a truly all-purpose offense that can improve basketball players IQ’s which can make for making better on court basketball decisions if it is run correctly & properly!

The fourth and final practice for the Husson women’s basketball team of having the “Read and React Offense” featured clinician Rick Torbett of BETTER BASKETBALL showing how it is a truly all-purpose offense which can do as it is advertised to do: Can improve basketball player’s IQ’s which can make for making better basketball decisions if run correctly and properly.

Rick showed this by putting it in tonight against even and odd front full, three quarter, half court presses and against regular 2-3, 1-3-1 and 1-2-2 zone defenses after putting it in versus man-to-man defense the first 3 nights.

The pass and cut to the middle by the passer is very unique and got a lot of open looks in the free throw lane anywhere from the foul line to the blocks.

Rick used the 5 out, 4 out 1 in with 1 moving on a cut after they made the pass to a teammate and 4 out 1 in with the in player at the foul line corners to middle on both sides.

Rick had them run it without a defense, vs. shell defense (defense cannot touching the ball) and live defense 5 on 5.

This is truly an all-purpose offense that can be run against any type of defense using the same theory of pass and cut and fill the vacant spot of the pass and cutter.

Actually the base of this offense is the pass and cut, which is really nothing more than the old pass of give and go which might probably have been the first actual play in basketball…Give and Go: Player with the ball passes to a teammate and cuts to the basket looking for the return pass.

Interesting that the old give and go can still be executed successfully in today’s game if run correctly as it is done when Read and React is run properly.

In running my old 4 out and 1 in offense when I was coaching in the 90’s we actually used the give and go, rear screen, fake give and go and go back door that is the essential foundation of the “Read and React”.

Tonight featured the pin screens vs. zones that he showed us last night in the man-to-man version of the “Read and React”.

I found that Rick Torbett is an outstanding clinician and really did an outstanding job of putting his “Read and React Offense” in four 2-hour practices for Coach Kissy Walker’s Husson University’s women’s basketball team.

The Husson players really reacted well to Rick and they seemed to really enjoy running the offense, the more they ran it.

The Husson women had everything presented to them that they need to go against any type of defense that they are going to see this coming season. They just need practice time to put it all together and the more that they run the “Read and React Offense”, the better they will be able to run it. They have a good understanding of the offense and it’s moves they just need more floor time and game time to smooth it out.

I would recommend to any coach at any level that you could run the “Read and React Offense” or just the basic parts of it if you so desired

In traditional motion or free-lance offense the passer can make a choice about what to do based on how the defense is playing. However, this is not the case with the Read & React. This is the main difference. In the Read & React when a player passes the ball he/she MUST CUT TO THE BASKET. The player does not have a choice. of things to do.

However, when the cutter enters the lane those decisions are given back to him/her. From the lane the player without the ball can back screen or post up, etc. Taking the decisions away from the passer and giving them back when they enter the lane allows players to be much more decisive and aggressive while giving them more time to make a “Next Best Action” decision when they get into the lane.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest ranking I would give Rick Torbett as a coach clinician and the “Read and React Offense”, a NINE………………………………………TEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Even though I was just there all four nights as a former coach, fan and now a basketball writer I found the entire 4 days very timely, interesting, informative, valuable, and well worth my time.

The “Read and React Offense” does exactly what Rick Torbett says and advertises it can do: Can develop higher basketball IQ’s which can make for better basketball decisions like improved shot selection and reducing turnovers if it is run properly.

I am sure the coaches who attended this FREE event can use this “Read and React Offense” or parts of it this coming season.

If you didn’t attend you may not be able to defend the “Read and React Offense” if you happen to face it this coming season.

It is a very unique fundamentally sound game and very tough to defend with any type of defense a team plays against the “Read and React”.

I want to thank Coach Walker for bringing Rick Torbett of BETTER BASKETBALL and his “Read and React Offense” to the greater Bangor area.

Bob Cimbollek