Syracuse (13-4, 4-0 Atlantic Coast) hasn’t lost since it fell to then-No. 7 Villanova in Philadelphia on Dec. 20, most recently beating Wake Forest 86-83 in overtime on Tuesday.

Now the Orange will travel to play at Clemson (9-7, 1-3) at 4 p.m. on Saturday, and the Tigers are one of the toughest teams SU will face since it was edged by the Wildcats. Add in the fact that Syracuse will be on the road for just the fifth time this season and the Orange’s first conference loss seems more than possible.

Here are five things SU needs to do to avoid that loss and stay spotless in ACC play.

1. Big three

With freshman forward Chris McCullough out for the season, no player in Syracuse’s “big three” — which includes senior Rakeem Christmas and juniors Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney — can afford to have a bad game.

Against the Demon Deacons, the trio scored 73 of the Orange’s 86 points. Gbinije was the only one of the three to sub out and did so for just three minutes. Christmas has scored under 10 points just once this season and had a career-high 35 against WFU.

Clemson allows the seventh-least points in the ACC and will, in all likelihood, be keying first on Christmas and then Gbinije and Cooney as secondary options. At least two of these three players will need a 20-point performance to beat the Tigers, and 20 or more from all would assure a Syracuse win.

2. Winning the margin

The Orange jumped out to a 15-5 lead on Tuesday by turning Wake Forest turnovers into easy points.

The Tigers turnover margin, -2.19 per game, is the worst in the conference and it would do SU well if it was able to dominate the turnover battle. If Syracuse is shooting relatively well and taking care of the ball, forcing turnovers could only amount to additional production for an offense that has frequently stalled this season.

Clemson also averages the least amount of assists per game of any ACC team. The backcourt battle is the Orange’s for the taking, and it’s one the visitors can win big.

3. No short cuts

Clemson is led in scoring by forward Jaron Blossomgame and Landry Nnoko, who possesses a more traditional post game, is also effective down low. If the Tigers are going to give SU a run for its money, it’s going to be on the back of Blossomgame and the rest of the hosts’ frontcourt.

The Orange did a good job of using the opposite guard in the zone to deny the high post against Wake Forest, but let the ball get to the short corner too often. Against the Demon Deacons, that meant open jump shots for freshman forward Konstantinos Mitoglou, who finished 10-for-13 from the field and 4-for-7 from 3 with 26 points. Against Clemson, Blossomgame and Nnoko are more likely to take a dribble or two and look to draw contact inside.

WFU let Syracuse’s frontcourt off the hook by settling for close-range jump shots. The Tigers won’t be as kind and the Orange can’t let it get to that. Deny the high post and the short corner and let Clemson’s guards handle the offensive load. Odds are they won’t do a very good job.

4. One or the other, or the other

Should Christmas, Cooney and Gbinije not be the same dominant trio it was against Wake Forest, one of freshman point guard Kaleb Joseph, sophomore guard Ron Patterson or now-starting forward Tyler Roberson has to step up.

Patterson played in place of Joseph for the majority of the second half last game, as the first-year floor general failed to attack the rim to head coach Jim Boeheim’s liking. But Patterson wasn’t any more effective and Roberson was tentative to shoot wide-open jump shots at the expense of the entire SU offense.

Life after McCullough will create more opportunities for less-looked-to players, and they just need to play to a level that is currently beyond their shown capabilities.

5. Point scorer

If Joseph struggles again and Gbinije is forced into the Orange’s point guard role, he has to continue to score out of it. The forward exploded for 16 points after halftime on Tuesday, and he spent most of that time bringing the ball up the court.

Earlier in the year Gbinije could afford to become a facilitator when spelling Joseph at point guard. But as the roster thins and the ACC competition stiffens, he no longer has the luxury to take his eyes off the basket.

Published on January 17, 2015 at 1:25 pm

Contact Jesse: jcdoug01@syr.edu | @dougherty_jesse