Syracuse students agree: Syracuse has to defend the home court.
Syracuse did what they had to do. They beat Wake Forest on Sunday. Now another ACC bubble team comes in with the NC State Wolfpack. They have been streaky as of late, earning a huge win against UNC on the road, and beating Notre Dame, before losing to VTech and then UNC. Syracuse, on the other hand, is on a two game win streak, looking to make it three. Syracuse will need to do a couple things. You know, the answer first is to rebound the ball well. Syracuse cannot afford to give teams extra possessions when points are at a premium for the Orange. But they also need to stop the Big Men and drive to the basket in this game. Defending the paint will be key for Syracuse. NC State isn't a great shooting team from outside the arc. I would label them as fair. That means, the majority of points for NC State come off of easier baskets by their center, and from their leading scorer Allerik Freeman. A grad transfer, he leads the Wolfpack in scoring, mostly from drives to the basket. The 2-3 needs to be active and make easy shots more difficult and they need to gobble up rebounds. If Syracuse is able to do that, Syracuse should win this game that they are surprisingly (although not that surprisingly as they are at home) favored to win this game. Syracuse needs to keep positive contributions from Chukwu going, as well as be ever conscious of the foul situation for each player on the floor. Syracuse may have Sidibe available tonight, and possibly Moyer, but they are no guarantee. Easy buckets when they are available, and rebounding will be key, just like a lot of games this season. But I think this game will actually come down to the Syracuse's defense and their ability to make stops and get rebounds, rather than just if they can somehow score more points than the other team. Deep, but true. Anyway, I'm taking the Orange at home against a team they should be able to handle. Syracuse over NC State by 6. This game is available regionally at 9:00pm. Check your local listings here. If you aren't blacked out, you can stream on WatchESPN, or on TheACC.com here for anyone. No blackout. John is in the Dome. I'll be in the past as this game isn't on TV in Massachusetts this evening. GO ORANGE!
Labels: ACC, Basketball, Preview
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