Once you're familiar with the game, use Manual movement for greater control. If you let the ball carrier go wherever he wants, you probably won't be satisfied with the results.

Normal formation is fine the vast majority of the time. Your players cover their zones well and work adequately. When Normal formation doesn't work, set up a Mark Mode defense. This strategy requires a specific setup, but it works great against teams with only one good shooter. Locate the team's best shooter before a match, and mark two or three players on him or her. Make sure you leave your other two players unassigned, so that they will remain open when you have the ball. In effect, this renders the other team's best shooter useless.

You can also just match up your team one-by-one with their players, and your team will shut them down quite effectively. For example assign a player with high Passing ability to an opponent with a low Block attribute for best results.