Judging by the list of contenders, winning the Big East will be a daunting task for any team in the conference.
So, what will it take for Syracuse to scale that mountain? Let’s take a look.
Syracuse has Jonny Flynn
The other teams don’t. Without a doubt, Flynn is the engine that drives the car for Syracuse. While basketball is still a big man’s game on the professional level, in college though, nothing is more important than strong point guard play.
Flynn (16.4 ppg, 5.5 apg) leads his team in scoring and assists, and his play this season has catapulted him into the discussion of best point guard in the country. He can nail threes and make free throws.
But perhaps his best attribute is his leadership. His teammates feed off of him, and he isn’t afraid to take big shots and make big plays. Just ask Mike Rosario. Good things happen for the Orange when the ball is in Flynn’s hands.
Balanced offense
Syracuse can score the basketball in a variety of ways. Flynn, Eric Devendorf, and Paul Harris can all drive to the hoop at will. Devendorf and Andy Rautins can drain threes with ease, while Flynn has shown an ability to make clutch three-pointers.
Scoring in the paint falls to Arinze Onuaku. The junior big man is built like he’s cut from a piece of granite. Combine his impressive physique with a field goal percentage of 71 percent (yes, you read that correctly), and good things happen when Onuaku gets the ball down low.
Harris, who possesses a Herculean build of his own, can use his tremendous strength to back his man into the post and score at will.
Paul Harris keeps being Paul Harris
There’s a reason Harris is often referred to as “Do It All Paul.” That’s because he does.
In addition to his ability to drive to the goal and score from the box, Harris has also improved his mid-range jump shot. So when teams, like Rutgers did on Saturday, leave him unguarded from 15 feet, Harris makes them pay.
His strength and athleticism also make him ideal for man-to-man defense when Boeheim chooses to employ that tactic.
And at 71 percent, Harris can be trusted to make critical free throws.
Versatility on Defense
For quite some time now, the 2-3 zone has been the staple of Syracuse’s defense. This season though, with a much deeper and much more athletic team, Boeheim has played significantly more man-to-man.
During games in which they’ve trailed, the Orange has unveiled an aggressive and highly effective full-court press.
With the different types of offense and skill sets they’ll encounter in conference play, such versatility will serve them well.
The schedule
Every team in the Big East plays three teams twice and every other team once. Syracuse has home-and-aways with Georgetown, Villanova, and Rutgers. So that means they only play UConn, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, and Louisville once. UConn and Pittsburgh are both strong, physical teams that have caused the Orange trouble over the years.
Notre Dame has the three-point shooting skill to wreak havoc on the Orange’s 2-3 zone, and Freedom Hall, combined with the pace the Cardinals prefer to play, makes Louisville one of the most difficult venues in the conference to grab a road win.
The only drawback of playing those four teams once is the emphasis to win becomes that much greater.
Three-point shooting
One of the reasons Syracuse landed in the NIT as opposed to the NCAA Tourney last season was due to a lack of punch from beyond the arc. Heading into the season, that was not the plan, but when both Andy Rautins and Eric Devendorf are sitting on the sidelines with torn ACLs, well, plans change.
Both players are back at full strength this year. Their ability to drain threes has multiple, positive effects on the offense besides the fact that three points are worth more than two points.
Teams can’t be so quick to double Onuaku if they know there is a price to pay for leaving an open shooter.
Secondly, just the mere threat of those two players creates better spacing on offense, thus allowing dribble penetration by Flynn, Harris, and Devendorf.
Lastly, other teams will think twice about playing a zone defense against the Orange.
Cut down on turnovers
Unfortunately, Syracuse has been a turnover machine this season. That absolutely must change. Give a team like Rutgers or Seton Hall extra possessions, and it’s possible to still win. Give UConn or Pittsburgh those same extra possessions, and you can start the bus at halftime.
No team, no matter how talented they are, can expect to win games if they turn the ball over at a high rate.
The Orange average around 16 turnovers per game. In their victory at Rutgers this past Saturday, they only had eight of them, including none for Jonny Flynn.
Decreasing their turnovers is one of the keys for Syracuse to make a run at the Big East title.
Moxie
For sure, this team has it. In four games this season (Kansas, Cornell, Virginia, and Memphis), Syracuse has trailed by double figures. They stormed back to win all four times.
The Big East is far too difficult to assume that at some point during conference play they won’t be trailing by double figures again. Recalling prior games where they overcame such deficits will give them that confidence to do it again.
The race for the Big East title is shaping up to be a mentally taxing and physically grueling test. Whoever is the last team standing will no doubt have earned their crown.
Will that team be Syracuse? At this point it is too early to say. But don’t bet against the Orange.
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