Kevin Pittsnogle — a West Virginia freshman who makes 53 percent of his 3-pointers — is so good he can score without shooting. Well, sort of.

To prepare for Pittsnogle — whom the Syracuse men’s basketball team will see tonight when it faces West Virginia at 7 in the Carrier Dome — SU head coach Jim Boeheim placed little-used freshman Matt Gorman on the 3-point line during yesterday’s practice. Center Jeremy McNeil guarded Gorman. When one of Gorman’s attempts hit the rim, Boeheim counted it as a made basket.

“If you do that tomorrow, you’re out of the game,” Boeheim told McNeil, who gave Gorman room to take the shot. “That’s a 3-pointer.”

Moments later, Gorman caught the ball and quickly passed it. Boeheim, though, envisioned Pittsnogle — who would rank first in the Big East in 3-point percentage if he attempted enough shots to qualify — arcing the ball over SU’s defense.

“That’s another one,” he said.

Tonight, Boeheim wants to avoid a repeat performance of the last time SU played West Virginia, on Feb. 8. Though SU won, 94-80, Pittsnogle made three early 3-pointers, boosting the Mountaineers to 31-16 lead.

“(Pittsnogle) doesn’t look like a basketball player, but he can really shoot the ball though,” SU forward Hakim Warrick said. “He’s got a nice touch and a high release. The first couple shots he took (on Feb. 8), he made. We know what Boeheim’s saying.”

While Pittsnogle’s looks — he’s a slight 6-foot-10, 220-pounder with a high schooler’s face — may not impress, his play has. Pittsnogle ranks second on the Mountaineers in points and rebounds. Sophomore guard Drew Schifino, who scored 25 points against Syracuse, leads WVU in both categories.

“He’s very confident in his abilities,” WVU head coach John Beilein said of Pittsnogle. “I wouldn’t say he’s cocky, but I can say he’s confident. He gets better and better.”

Lately, though, Pittsnogle has regressed. Since playing Syracuse, he’s shot 12 of 35 and totaled double-figures once.

The Mountaineers have slipped, too. WVU has lost four of its last five games, although three of those were against ranked opponents. The stretch sunk West Virginia (13-11, 4-8 Big East) into sixth place in the Big East West Division, a game and a half ahead of last-place Rutgers, and put the Mountaineers in danger of missing the Big East tournament for the second consecutive year. Syracuse (19-4, 9-3), meanwhile, is tied for first in the Big East West.

“(Pittsnogle’s) a good shooter, you have to get out on him,” Boeheim said. “He was part of the problem (last game). He’s probably one of the best big shooters I’ve ever seen.”

While Pittsnogle presents a matchup problem for Syracuse, the Orangemen’s offense creates plenty of dilemmas for West Virginia.

The Orangemen learned on their last trip to West Virginia that bigger isn’t always better. Syracuse employed a lineup featuring three guards — Billy Edelin, Gerry McNamara and Kueth Duany — and no centers most of the game.

“It’s more of a reaction,” Syracuse assistant coach Mike Hopkins said of the small lineup. “There are situations where we will use it. We’re a lot quicker team with those five in the game. It was effective down there, so we definitely could use it.”

In addition to giving SU extra speed to defend Pittsnogle, the small lineup also provided extra offensive options. McNamara and Edelin shredded West Virginia’s 1-3-1 zone, helping the Orangemen shoot 58 percent and collect nine dunks.

The formula was simple. Syracuse placed its two most athletic players — Warrick and Carmelo Anthony — on the baseline. Since Warrick and Anthony could easily outleap the defender at the back of WVU’s zone, their dunks were uncontested. McNamara connected with Warrick on three alley-oops in the second half.

“That’s my favorite (defense) to play against,” Warrick said of the 1-3-1, “especially when they put a smaller guy in the back. It’s one player. When we have two people that athletic, it’s hard to stop.”

Published on February 25, 2003 at 12:00 pm