By Paul Gotham
Setting: 900 Irving Avenue, in Syracuse New York, is the place as Josh Pastner brings his Memphis Tigers (10-3) to Upstate New York for a non-conference tilt with Jim Boeheim’s No.7 Syracuse Orange (13-1, 1-1).
Plot: It is Conference USA versus the Big East in a game that pits two teams who have combined for 11 NCAA Tournament appearances since 2003. Memphis advanced to the final in 2008 (since vacated) and the Elite Eight in ’06 and ’07. Last season the Tigers were eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen. Syracuse won the title in ’03 and earned Sweet Sixteen berths in ’04 and ’09.
Sub-plot: The game brings together arguably the two best transfers in the country. Memphis’s Elliot Williams played at Duke last season. Two years ago, Wes Johnson made the move from Iowa State to Syracuse. Coincidentally, Duke plays Iowa State immediately following this game.
Flashback: Jonny Flynn led the Orange with 24 points and six assists as Syracuse went into the FedEx Forum and took a 72-65 road win from the Tigers last December. Syracuse leads the series 2-1. Wednesday’s game marks the first time the two have met at the Carrier Dome.
Foreshadowing: The Tigers have sent 29 to the NBA including current players Rodney Carney, Joey Dorsey, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Tyreke Evans, and Derrick Rose. Thirty-four Orange have earned spots in the league. Carmelo Anthony, Jonny Flynn, Donte Green, Jason Hart, Etan Thomas and Hakim Warrick currently hold spots on NBA rosters.
Mood: With their Big East schedule ready to get into full swing, the Orange could easily overlook this game. Classes are not in session, and it is the middle of the week. On the other hand, the Orange will seek to right their ship after their first lost on Saturday to Pittsburgh, 82-72. If Syracuse wants to prove themselves as an elite team, this is an important game to win.
A victory for Memphis could go a long way in securing an at-large bid, if needed, in the NCAA Tournament. Memphis’s three losses have been by a combined 10 points. The Tigers lost to No. 1 Kansas, 57-55. UMass toppled the Tigers at the buzzer, 73-72. The Tigers fell to No. 14 Tennessee, 66-59.
Conflict: Syracuse is second in the nation with 12.6 steals per game. Memphis ranks ninth in the category with 10.6 steals per game. The similarities continue from there. The Orange outscore opponents by an average margin of 22 points. The Tigers hold a 20.1 advantage in this category. Syracuse hits .393 of their attempts from behind the arc. Memphis finishes .358 from long range. Syracuse limits their opponents to .298 success on three balls. Memphis opponents hit just .292 behind the arc.
Meanwhile, Syracuse averages 21.1 assists per game to 14.5 for Memphis. At the same time, Syracuse turns over the ball 15.9 times to 12.2 for Memphis. Syracuse has a rebound margin of +3.2. Memphis holds a margin of 1.0.
All these could be null and void depending upon how Memphis responds to the Syracuse zone.
Williams leads four Tigers in double figures with 19.7. The sophomore adds four rebounds and assists per game. What makes Williams difficult to defend is that he has 23 trifectas out of 66 attempts. At the same, the 6’5″ guard can go off the dribble and get to the rim (think of Dwyane Wade driving the lane). Can Williams penetrate the Syracuse zone? He will need to be patient and wait to catch the ball in reversal.
Wesley Witherspoon scores 10 point per game off the bench. The 6’9″ forward will need to be alert and find seams in the zone as Williams looks to drive.
Doneal Mack and Roburt Sallie combine for 21 points in Pastner’s four-guard lineup. Mack leads the Tigers with 28 three-pointers. The senior hit four from long-range in a losing effort to Tennessee.
Will Coleman grabs six boards off the bench to lead the way for Memphis.
Johnson leads four Orange in double figures with 17 points per game. The junior adds 8.8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Johnson plays his best when the Orange need him. He scored 17 points in a win over Cal, 25 in a victory over UNC, and 17 against Florida. Johnson had 13 points and 12 rebounds as the Orange erased a six-point second-half deficit against Seton Hall.
Arinze Onuaku adds 10 points and 3.7 boards per game.
Brandon Triche scores 10 a game with 2.9 assists. The freshman guard had just one turnover in 26 minutes of play against Pittsburgh.
Kris Joseph adds ten points and 5.6 rebounds off the bench.
Senior, Andy Rautins leads the Orange with 32 three pointers. He also leads the team with 2.4 steals per game.
Rautins along with Scoop Jardine top the Orange with an assist to turnover ratio of 2.2/1.
Rick Jackson scores 9.9 per game with 7.3 rebounds.
Resolution: Coleman and Witherspoon match up well with Onuaku and Jackson. For the first time this year, the Syracuse front court will not have a size advantage over their opponents. The question for Josh Pastner will be whether he goes with his four-guard lineup or decides to match up inside with the Orange.
The Tigers are catching the Orange at the wrong time. Saturday’s loss served as the wake up call this Syracuse team needed. Memphis has the ability to make this a game in the second half. Syracuse’s rebounding advantage will prove the difference in the end.
Got any comments on the game? Please post them here.
1st Team All-Casey
PG Sherron Collins – Kansas
SG Jeremy Hazell – Seton Hall
SF Wes Johnson – Syracuse
PF Damion James – Texas
C Greg Monroe – Georgetown
2nd Team All-Casey
PG – Jon Scheyer – Duke
SG – Elliot Williams -Memphis
SF – Robbie Hummel – Purdue
PF – Al-Farouq Aminu – Wake Forest
C – Cole Aldrich – Kansas
I think Syracuse will show up tonight, thanks to the poor effort displayed on Saturday in the loss to Pitt. Saturday’s loss was a classic example of a team thinking they were better than they truly are. The formula for this Syracuse team is simple – be active and aggressive in the zone defensively, and share the ball to create open shots. The underlying factor is hustle (SU got beat to nearly every loose ball on Saturday). This Syracuse team is not a “world-beater” and the moment they forget this fact is the exact moment they’ll get smacked in the mouth (i.e. Pitt last Saturday).
Memphis is a tough bunch. I’ve had the opportunity to see them play a few times this year and they have been quite impressive. They play hard and they play with purpose which is a reflection of a good coach. Josh Pastner is such a cool, refreshing story – at 19 years old he applied for his first head coaching job (I believe it was the Clippers opening). I didn’t even have a resume when I was 19.
Pastner’s team plays with fire. They are not the most talented team but neither is Syracuse. The great thing about basketball is that the talent factor doesn’t always translate to the “W” column at the end of the season. Memphis will play hard and I believe they will keep it close. In the end, I think it will be Syracuse on top.
The most interesting factor in this game for me is going to be the attitude displayed by ‘Cuse. Will they come out like a bunch of pouty punks after losing to Pitt? Or, will they grow a set, get ticked off, realize that if they don’t play hard EVERY game against EVERY team, they will lose (LeMoyne anyone?)…..
Chris
Great insights. Interesting tidbits on Pastner – after taking the Memphis job, the young coach was approached by the businesses looking to reign him in as a spokesperson. In return, Pastner would receive cash for his services. Pastner politely declined all this income. The message: Thanks for the offer, but I am here to coach not do commercials.
As of October, Pastner had one of the top recruiting classes lined up. Which brings up the topic again: Why did Calipari leave Memphis?
Thanks for the info. Paul. Great insights into tonight’s game. I’ve been looking forward to it all week as I was left with feelings of anger and disgust after the ‘Cuse’s performance on Saturday.
As Chris said, they need to play with fire and hustle tonight. They need to play with the chip on their shoulders that they were playing with at the beginning of the year. I didn’t see that emotion on Saturday.
I think that Pitt had a great game plan to beat ‘Cuse on Saturday. They slowed it down, made it a relatively low scoring game (especially the first half) and kept Rautins from any open looks from 3. Doing that forced other players (i.e. Triche and Joseph) to shoot from the outside more than they should have. They had little success.
Like I’ve said on here before…Big East teams know how to play the ‘Cuse. Out of conference teams don’t see the 2-3 as often and don’t have the team scouted as well. My formula for success against Syracuse would be to get in the penalty early and use your 5 bench players to foul Onuaku every possession.
I’ll chime in later, but just a couple of early thoughts.
As far as Calipari is concerned…isn’t he coaching a top 5 Kentucky team now?? Plus as we’ve seen in the past, recruiting violations don’t follow a coach, they stay with the program left behind (ex. USC).
Dan,
Good point about Pitt’s game plan. Jamie Dixon is a solid coach who knows how to get his players to commit to team goals. Familiarity helps too. Dixon knows how to attack that zone. It is no coincidence that Pitt chose to focus on Rautins.
As for Calipari – that is my point – he never overstays his welcome, and he never stays long enough to have to be accountable for the past.