BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: West Virginia @ Syracuse

February 20, 2006


Another edition of Big Monday and Syracuse looks to end their Big Monday struggles tonight against West Virginia. Syracuse has lost six of eight after starting off 3-0 in the conference and finish out conference play with WVU tonight and Villanova at home with road games with Georgetown and DePaul in between. Syracuse needs to win one and probably find a way to win another to assure themselves of a ticket to the Big Dance. If they finish 7-9 in the conference, they will REALLY be sweating out selection Sunday.

West Virginia started conference play 8-0, but has seen the schedule turn much more difficult and drop three of their last four. They did manage a very good road win at Georgetown in between road losses to Pittsburgh and Seton Hall. They returned home over the weekend and dropped a game to Connecticut and have to hit the road again tonight for a meetin in Syracuse. A tall order for a team that relies on 3-pt shooting and only plays seven in their rotation. Tonight is their 5th game, 4th on the road, in 11 days.

Here are the internet stories and previews on tonight's game:


WVU Seeing Orange Tonight (Bluefield Daily Telegraph)
Fatigue May Be Problem for WVU, SU (Register-Herald)
McNamara Draws a Crowd (Charleston Gazette)
Gansey Upgrades His Game (Syracuse Post-Standard)
WVU Looks to End Big East Slide (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Next Test for SU's Defense (Post-Standard)

To read our preview and see our game prediction, click read more below and don't forget to leave your prediction in the comments section!

READ OUR PREVIEW...CLICK "Read More" BELOW


The good news tonight for the Syracuse Orange is that West Virginia is unlikely to put them at the foul line very much. In their win Saturday night against Louisville, Syracuse was a horrid 19-46 from the foul line. The bad news, West Virginia is extremely vulnerable on the inside, and Syracuse struggles to get offense from their interior players.

Being a strong outside shooting team, West Virginia would be a perfect candidate to shoot holes in the Syracuse 2-3 zone. However, Syracuse has had success coming out of their zone against the Mountaineers in the past and the SU length and athleticism could make WVU work harder for points and wear down their outside shooting. Syracuse will never defend as hard or as smart as Pittsburgh, but I think they can use that defensive blueprint as a model tonight.

Attacking the West Virginia 1-3-1 zone is the Syracuse key. Knowing where they can get open shots, in the corner and foul line extended, are the key and how to make the zone contract and dish to the soft spots. If they can find Gerry McNamara and Demetris Nichols in those areas and Eric Devendorf can penetrate to score and dish, the Syracuse offense should be able to click and that will open the back line for dunks from Terrence Roberts and Daryl Watkins. Syracuse needs to be smart with the ball and not turn it over, because when they do, it is usually followed by a defensive breakdown, too.

This game is an absolute must have for the home underdogs as Syracuse is fighting for their NCAA tournament lives. In order to get to 8-8 in the conference and to be safely in the Field of 65, this is one they have to have. If there ever was a right time to play West Virginia as their schedule has certainly taken some of the life out of their legs. They will not have the fired up home crowd to give them additional energy and when Syracuse's backs are against the wall, Jim Boeheim usually pulls out all the stops. I think Kevin Pittsnogle and Mike Gansey will get their share, but the Orange will put the clamps on the rest of the team, will SU take care of the basketball? That is where the game will hinge. Valuing their possessions and taking good shots is the key. With their season still hanging in the balance, I think SU will pay attention to details and pull out an important win.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Syracuse 66 West Virginia 63