Sentence:  The defender playing the man with the ball meets him at the perimeter. The other five defenders will "<WSD>sag off</WSD>"their men at varying distances, which are determined by the location of the offensive players. The defender can sag only to the point where he can effectively guard his man if he were to receive the ball. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To back off from an opponent against whom one is defending.