Three Things

1. Avoid the trap game

It’s hard to call any game in the Big East a trap game, but Saturday’s game against Marquette falls into that category. Let’s admit, after three straight road wins, including two in a row at West Virginia and Notre Dame, the Orange may be due for a letdown performance.

After the Orange plays Marquette, SU hosts No. 12 Georgetown in a huge conference game Monday night at the Dome. With the longtime rivalry starting to boil even more in recent years, some of the players could already be looking ahead to that showdown. Marquette, meanwhile, is a former Conference USA team with not nearly as much history against the Orange, and there is a lack of intrigue.

Marquette comes into tomorrow’s game at 2-4 in the conference, although that record is deceptive, as it has lost tight games to West Virginia and DePaul. The Golden Eagles have even hung with the top team in the conference, Villanova, twice. The combined amount of points it lost by in those four games? Six. The Golden Eagles have also beaten Georgetown, showing it can win a tough game. A lack of focus could spell trouble for the Orange.

Three times this season, Syracuse has faced two opponents within a span of three days, and the Orange is 6-0 in those games. It defeated Albany and Robert Morris from Nov. 9-11, California and North Carolina between Nov. 19-20, and, most recently, West Virginia and Notre Dame from Jan. 16-18.

Monday night’s game against Georgetown could go a long way toward determining the top seed in the conference tournament come February. Before then, the Orange has to make sure it stays at one loss by not slipping up to a Marquette team it should be able to defeat.

2. Get Kris Joseph back in form

When Kris Joseph is playing well, there is no drop-off in the level of play for the Orange when he enters the game. The sophomore forward has been one of the brightest spots for SU, playing solid minutes for most of the season and at times performing better than the starters he usually spells, Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson.

Recently, Joseph’s play has dropped off. While it may be due to a lingering ankle injury, he scored just 25 points in his last four games, the worst four-game stretch of his season. In comparison, in the five games from Dec. 19 to Jan. 6, Joseph averaged 13 points a game and scored in double digits in four of the contests.

While the numbers are down, Joseph is showing signs that he’s ready to turn it around. He scored 13 points in the win at West Virginia and followed that up with eight points and five rebounds against Notre Dame. After playing just 25 combined minutes against South Florida and Rutgers, he’s averaged 26.5 minutes the past two contests.

Syracuse is starting to enter the point in the season where depth is vital, as traditionally players start to feel the effects of playing nearly 40 minutes every night at this time of year. With Joseph playing like he was earlier in the year, he can make it easier for Jim Boeheim to go to the bench and give one of his big men a rest.

3. Lockdown Lazar Hayward

This isn’t the same Marquette team that you’ve been hearing about for the past three years. It’s big three of Jerel McNeal, Dominic James and Wesley Matthews are all gone. A new nucleus is in place for Marquette in Buzz Williams’ second year.

One player that remains for Marquette, though, is forward Lazar Hayward. The senior from Buffalo is leading Marquette with 18.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Were Hayward to play for the Orange, he would lead the team in points per contest and register at second in rebounding average. He entered the season as one of the top players in the Big East and is living up to that reputation.

In last year’s contest against Syracuse, an 86-79 SU win, Hayward shot 7-of-17 for 17 points and grabbed five rebounds. Since this is not the same MU team that the Orange defeated last year, Syracuse can now turn most of its attention to the forward.

Marquette primarily relies on the services of Hayward and guard/forward Jimmy Butler to deliver its offense, as they have scored 44 percent of Marquette’s points. If the zone defense can keep Hayward contained, it will put more pressure on Butler to step up, and he’s not the same talent that Hayward is.

Keeping Hayward from having a monster day will also put pressure on sophomore guard Darius Johnson-Odom and senior guard Maurice Acker. While they are playing well, they only combine for more than 20 points per contest. Johnson-Odom and Acker would have to have excellent days to make up for Hayward’s points, which will not be the easiest of tasks.

— Compiled by staff writer Matt Ehalt

Published on January 21, 2010 at 12:00 pm