It’s been a while since my last XBox night at a friend’s house. But the lessons learned from playing NBA 2K7 are still with me. Read on and see what they are.

Push, push, and push! As soon as you grab the board or inbound the ball, push forward. Pass the ball upcourt as quickly as possible, and bring it into the paint. Either your big man or quick guard will get receive there, and it’s easy for both to score inside. The big man will use his size, while the quick guard is great at drawing contact while changing his shot to avoid a block. If scoring the quick isn’t possible, then kick it out to an outside shooter and burn the defense with a trey. Remember, when in doubt, push!

Play honest defense. With the left trigger button, you can face up to the ball handler. Honest defense is a key to winning games, because you make it harder for opponents to bring up the ball (see above) and decrease the chances for their shots to go in. If the offensive player threatens to go around you with a quick first step, use Turbo (right trigger button) to keep up.

Practice your freethrows. Just like in real games, making your freethrows crucial because some games are decided by less than five points. Besides, if opponents see that you’re weak from the line, they’ll keep fouling you to take advantage.

In many ways, 2K7 accurately mimics the NBA. Which makes sense, because the tips listed above are actually considered conventional (i.e., winning) wisdom in the basketball world.