Sorry I've been slacking off lately, but a few other things have required my time. Now to the issue at hand. Tonight, Weds. November 21st, the 'Cuse heads to NYC to take on Ohio State at Madison Square Garden. The Syracuse Orangemen vs.
The Ohio State University Buckeyes
It looks to be another rumble, and a good test for our young kids. Seeing some top competition this early in the season can only be a good thing and I'm sure we'll learn from it win or lose.
First off a recap of our season stats:
Player | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | TO | FG % | 3PT % | A:TO Ratio |
Donte Greene | 19.0 | 8.3 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 3.3 | 0.553 | 0.421 | 0.4 |
Eric Devendorf | 16.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 1.7 | 3.3 | 0.500 | 0.385 | 1.2 |
Arinze Onuaku | 13.7 | 5.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 0.667 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
Jonny Flynn | 13.0 | 3.3 | 7.7 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.538 | 0.700 | 3.8 |
Paul Harris | 12.7 | 11.7 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 4.3 | 0.444 | 1.000 | 1.0 |
Rick Jackson | 6.3 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.750 | 0.000 | 0.0 |
Scoop Jardine | 1.7 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 1.7 | 0.250 | 0.000 | 0.8 |
Kristof Ongenaet | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 0.250 | 0.000 | 0.3 |
Overall, we distribute points fairly evenly over the five starters. All five are in double figures. Its also good to have some low post guys who can score in Onuaku and Jackson. If we can maintain the scoring diversity we should be able to go a ways this year. Also, the A:T ratio shows that Flynn after his one bad 5TO game seems to alleviating that issue and is now at a 4:1 clip almost. People wonder why I have so much confidence with the ball in his hand (Sorry Josh)...
Now OSU's Season Stats. I'm going 3 deep on the bench based on playing time for comparison's sake.
Player | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | TO | FG % | 3PT % | A:TO Ratio |
Kosta Koufos | 18.5 | 7.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.619 | 0.667 | 1.0 |
Jamar Butler | 17.5 | 5.0 | 6.5 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.550 | 0.500 | 6.5 |
David Lighty | 17.0 | 6.0 | 4.0 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.625 | 0.333 | 2.7 |
Othello Hunter | 12.0 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.579 | 0.000 | 1.0 |
Evan Turner | 3.5 | 2.5 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.250 | 0.333 | 3.0 |
Kon Diebler | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 0.100 | 0.111 | 1.0 |
PJ Hill | 2.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.250 | 0.500 | 0.0 |
Matt Terwillinger | 2.5 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.500 | 0.500 | 0.0 |
As you can see, Koufos, this years version of Greg Oden for them, is their leading scorer. Contrary to the Cuse though, they rely primarily on Koufos, Butler and Lighty to make their buckets. Butler is their shooter, at 9-18 from behind the arc. Hopefully the zone stretches to him, and AO, Rick and Greene don't get out of position down low on Koufos.
Lighty is the slasher/scorer/midrange guy (Think Devo, but more apt to pull up).
Koufos is my major concern though. Rick and Arinze give up 3 inches to this guy, though both weigh as much as he does. If one of them can stay bodied up on him at all times, and use the physical game on both ends of the court that I have seen out of them so far, I think we may be able to get him in foul trouble early. Jackson and Onuaku have not shyed away from the physical game yet, and if they bang hard down low on Offense, they will both be getting to the stripe, as Koufos will have to go over them to defend anything.
Overall the post will be the key to this game, along with the obvious limiting of turnovers. If we can handle Koufos down low, while getting production out of our two big men, we come away victorious.
Scenario:
Syracuse, NY ~Mid February
A Syracuse team that has had trouble gelling finally gets it and makes a run. Finishing out their last 10 games impressively, including big wins over the stretch. The toppling of Georgetown is among these victories. The biggest snub in NCAA history occurs, and this 22-10 team who finished 5th in the Big East (A power conference) somehow gets the boot from the selection committee. Upstate NY is thrown for a loop.
Fast Forward to Mid-March.
Same team is on the floor in a post-season tournament (not the one they wanted, but let's stick it to Walters). Run through the first two rounds of the tournament, including setting a record for NIT attendance along the way in the Carrier Dome, with arguably the best crowd of the season. The world is riding high on 'Cuse hoops (or at least we all are).
Last night:
Travel to Clemson to take on a Tigers team that is in the dumps, but has been rolling much like the Orange in the NIT. Clemson decides to hit everything from beyond the arc in the first half, finishing at .474 for the game (season long .338 team), while Cuse, a team known for it's shooting hits .188, the only shooter hitting being D. Nichols. You'd think we get blown out, and figure the season is a wash right?
Of course not! We rebound from a 17 point deficit in the second half, make a 22-7 run, and bring the game back within a point under a minute. I called it perfectly over in my South Alabama post-game thread, the state of Cuse Hoops has been a roller coaster for the last few years, every game.
The seniors gave everything they have to keep this run alive, and I respect them for it. The more I look back on it, the more I'm going to miss this group. They may not have been the smartest players, (Hoops IQ-wise), but damn it they gave everything they had on every day it seemed. From the heartache vs Wichita State when DNic missed the layup, to Roberts playing the end of the season and finishing it out on one leg, these guys have been great. Watching Mookie develop into a legitimate Center, and even seeing Gorman rocking around in his assless chaps at Providence...
Basically all I'm trying to say is that it was good to see this group of seniors step up and take the reigns, when at the beginning of the season everyone wondered "What will we do without Gerry?" Well, I'm here to pose a new question "What will we do without DNic? or Mookie?" There are some gaps to fill now and hopefully we can have immediate impact from Flynn, Greene, Scoop, and Jackson when they show up on campus to fill those shoes.
