The Israelites had begun to gather around her in a defensive circle.

The humans instinctively huddled together to form a defensive circle.

He ran at the defensive circle of behemoths.

Everybody stayed on guard, lying or crouching in their defensive circle from the night before.

Lord Waldron was part of the defensive circle, not within it protected by his troops.

The companions cut loose with their weapons, moving carefully over the vine-encrusted floor to form a defensive circle.

The line at the top of the defensive circles is called the Free Play Line.

The marines formed themselves into a defensive circle, scanning the trees and the nearby houses with their most basic sensors.

Taita stepped out of the defensive circle to greet him.

In non-American sources it is in fact usually referred to simply as a "defensive circle".