MBB: Syracuse @ Duke (Feb 28, 7 pm, ESPN) Pre-Game and In-Game Thread

[Tripping William]

Tomorrow may be the only day I share anything in common with Ol' Roy. I won't be in the dadgum Christmas spirit. I hope Jah isn't, either.

[uh_no]

it'll be a blow out win. we'll win by 30

jk. I'll expect a 10-15 point victory. we've played very well in rematches this year (one for one!). I think that being at home against a zone, the game will never be in question (that whole knowing your spots thing), but I expect cuse will score enough points to prevent it getting out of hand a-la ND. If it is really jah's injury keeping them from going all out on defense, I'm skeptical much will have changed from the VT game in terms of ability to go harder.

[MarkD83]

it'll be a blow out win. we'll win by 30

So I should get my antacid pills and expect that Syracuse shoots 70% from 3s and we go to OT?

[Kedsy]

"Hypothesis" may be more accurate. Feels good to try to "pull a Kedsy" on the man himself!

Agreed. Hypothesis would be more accurate. After the four-to-six game stretch is over, perhaps I can upgrade it to a theory.

[gcashwell]

Yeah. That seems to be the path forward.

Coach K sure loves those 4s who can shoot, huh?

He likes his best five at the time. Amile hasn't been good lately. We need that to change.

There's something I don't like about this game. I can't put my finger on it though.

[MChambers]

Agreed. Hypothesis would be more accurate. After the four-to-six game stretch is over, perhaps I can upgrade it to a theory.

Does your hypothesis/future theory mean that Duke will be in trouble in the NCAA tournament, since we are unlikely to have many, if any, rematches then? Or do you modify your hypothesis to posit that our young team will immediately know that tournament games require extra commitment?

[Duke3517]

Does your hypothesis/future theory mean that Duke will be in trouble in the NCAA tournament, since we are unlikely to have many, if any, rematches then? Or do you modify your hypothesis to posit that our young team will immediately know that tournament games require extra commitment?

I just feel like Duke's problem will be that they will see a team that is not nearly as talented but they will get punched in the mouth because of their defensive lapses. Youth could be a problem because the sense of urgency come tournament time is so much different than the regular season. Duke has Quinn Cook who has that experience being that he has been as far as the elite 8 and been disappointed to get knocked out in the first round. Hopefully that experience helps the youth of Duke come tournament time.

[OldPhiKap]

Given that Syracuse is not playing in any post-season, this game literally may be their championship of the year game (although on Monday, they have their last home game v. UVa). They think they should have won the game in Cameron last year. They will certainly bring it, hard.

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[Duke3517]

Given that Syracuse is not playing in any post-season, this game literally may be their championship of the year game (although on Monday, they have their last home game v. UVa). They think they should have won the game in Cameron last year. They will certainly bring it, hard.

Silent G will also come with a little extra motivation as well. Glad he is doing well.

[OldPhiKap]

Silent G will also come with a little extra motivation as well. Glad he is doing well.

Agreed on both counts. Always liked {g} and glad he landed in a good spot. I root for him all but one or two times a year!

[moonpie23]

it'll be a blow out win. we'll win by 30

jk. I'll expect a 10-15 point victory. we've played very well in rematches this year (one for one!). I think that being at home against a zone, the game will never be in question (that whole knowing your spots thing), but I expect cuse will score enough points to prevent it getting out of hand a-la ND. If it is really jah's injury keeping them from going all out on defense, I'm skeptical much will have changed from the VT game in terms of ability to go harder.

ye shall incur wrath with this...

[sagegrouse]

Some have already been mentioned.

1. Will Rakeem Christmas come roaring back against Okafor and Duke? He was held to 11 and 6 by Jahlil, who scored 23 and had 13 rebounds.
   
2. Does Gbinijie have another big game in him? He scored 19 in the first half at the Carrier Dome. It will be interesting to see if Duke makes some defensive adjustments.
   
3. Can Jahlil and others make free throws? At Virginia Tech we shot below 50 percent.
   
4. Will the team play with a high level of energy? The Devils looked slow in Blacksburg (ankle weights?).
   
5. Will Duke be able to penetrate the Orange's zone and get shots in the paint as well as passes to open threes?
   
6. Will the threes be falling for Duke?

[TKG]

IMO, we need to rebound well and push the ball up the floor- like we did against Virginia. Do not let the Orangemen set up their zone. Big opportunity for Justise tonight; could be his kind of game.

[lotusland]

ye shall incur wrath with this...

Yeah JK if we lose or it's a nail biter prepare for pages and pages of chastisement because of that reverse voodoo hoo-doo you do so well.

[lotusland]

Yeah. That seems to be the path forward.

Coach K sure loves those 4s who can shoot, huh?

This I don't really understand since, in 2010, we basically rotated MP1, MP2, Lance and Zoubek at 4 and 5 which seemed to work out pretty well. Ryan barely played and Kyle had maybe a few minutes at 4 but mostly we had a non-shooter at 4. Amile is a 60% free throw shooter so I'm OK with him taking the 15 footer or, if he draws the defense, going to the basket off the bounce. Matt really hasn't shown much of a mid-range game either so I don't see the benefit of having him in that role over Amile.

[weezie]

Silent G will also come with a little extra motivation as well.

I would agree and bet he gets a warm round of applause from the Crazies.

Until the ball tips, that is.

[Troublemaker]

Coach K sure loves those 4s who can shoot, huh?

So does Jahlil, who appreciates making it tough for teams to double-team him. And so do Tyus, Justise, and Quinn, who all enjoy the floor being spaced for their drives.

Amile is a 60% free throw shooter so I'm OK with him taking the 15 footer or, if he draws the defense, going to the basket off the bounce. Matt really hasn't shown much of a mid-range game either so I don't see the benefit of having him in that role over Amile.

That's not Matt's role, though. It's completely different. Matt stands outside the 3-pt line to space the floor and hits threes at a 37% clip, which is waaaay more efficient than having Amile shoot midrange jumpers.

[Furniture]

Control silent G. Syracuse played well in the first match up and clearly know what they need to do. But G was on fire and it will be interesting to see if he can replicate in any way. Duke needs to play smart and make their throws. Should be good game.

I think G was on fire in the first half but K made an adjustment in the second and took him out of it.

[Saratoga2]

I don't buy all the talk about players and teams being speciallly motivated for the many reasons given. Players may be tired from travel, study, too many late nights or may find it difficult to adjust to lineup changes or specific offenses and defenses they play against or in. I tend to think players are motivated to play and win and thats a given. Are they prepared? Are they overmached? Have they really learned what is expected of them? Do they have the talent? Those are the questions which I think are more meaningful.

Silent G was hard to handle in our first game, while we held Christmas way below his norm. I would think Justise can handle Silent G as well as anyone we have with a possible switch to Matt from time to time. Handling Christmas is more difficult, since he really is a very good center. Jahlil has the physical talent to slow him down, but is that what he is expected to do, or is he expected to score inside and avoid foul trouble? If not Jahlil, do either Amile or MP3 have the talent to stop him? I don't think are alternative centers are a good matchup.

Other than those two I think we match up well enough and should outscore them from other positions. We need Tyus to get his game going again and we need Amile to show more of the ability that was evident earlier in the year. Has the whack he took against FSU impacted his play? Can't think of another reason for him to have regressed so noticably.

[Kedsy]

Does your hypothesis/future theory mean that Duke will be in trouble in the NCAA tournament, since we are unlikely to have many, if any, rematches then? Or do you modify your hypothesis to posit that our young team will immediately know that tournament games require extra commitment?

Both of these thoughts have crossed my mind. I think in the early rounds there is a danger of not realizing how much intensity our opponent will bring but, hopefully we'll be able to out-talent them (especially if we're fortunate enough to get a #1 seed) -- although the 2nd round might be dangerous in this regard, depending on opponent. My guess is from the Sweet 16 on, despite probably not having played the opponent before, the players would treat the games like they treated, e.g., Wisconsin, Louisville, Virginia, and our intensity level will be fine.