full-court press

[ fool-kawrt, -kohrt ]

noun

1. Basketball. a tactic of harassing, close-guarding defense in which the team without the ball pressures the opponent man-to-man the entire length of the court in order to disrupt dribbling or passing and force a turnover:

   Suddenly behind by eighteen points, they went to a full-court press.

2. a vigorous attack or offensive.

full-court press

noun

1. basketball the tactic of harrying the opposing team in all areas of the court, as opposed to the more usual practice of trying to defend one's own basket

Idioms and Phrases

An all-out effort to exert pressure. For example, She'd learned over the years how to deliver a full-court press of guilt . The term alludes to a basketball tactic in which the defenders put pressure on the opposing team over the entire court, trying to disrupt their dribbling and passing. [Late 1900s]

Example Sentences

One summer, he stumbled upon a remote court in Orlando, where he saw a tireless guard running a full-court press all by himself.

From FiveThirtyEight

The Illini had 11 turnovers in the first quarter, and the Terps opened the second with a full-court press that forced a 10-second violation on the first possession.

From Washington Post

What better defense can there be against the threat of legal action than a full-court press at the very end?

From The Daily Beast

In basketball, that means playing a full-court press defense.

From The Daily Beast

The question is: does AIPAC decide to make a full court press?

From The Daily Beast

But Jeb Bush, the brother and son of presidents, is already getting the full-court press to run for the White House in 2016.

From The Daily Beast

That still leaves all those other women getting the full court press--hell, getting sacked--every time they open their mouths.

From The Daily Beast

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