Kristof Ongenaet stood isolated on the outskirts of the media day melee two weeks ago.

The attention flocked elsewhere. To the sharpshooting guards back from ACL injuries (Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins). To the player one Sporting News writer declared the best point guard in the nation (Jonny Flynn). To Scoop Jardine, who had the news peg (stress fracture forcing him to redshirt). To a hulking Paul Harris and his pro-appeal.

The herds did not graze toward Ongenaet. Instead, the senior forward sat back and soaked it in.

‘Players got stronger and more experienced,’ Ongenaet said, praising his teammates one by one. ‘I’m just full of excitement, and I can’t wait for the season to start.’

Ongenaet is an anomaly on the Orange. He isn’t a guard, he’s a forward. He doesn’t have the offensive leeway of most of his frontcourt mates. He has a specific job, a defined role. On a team stacked with guards, wings and perimeter big men churning the offense, Ongenaet is an unquestioned four-man.

He’s the steady influence SU head coach Jim Boeheim expects.

‘I thought he got comfortable,’ Boeheim said. ‘He figured out what he can do well. He’s a hustle guy. He gets things down, gets rebounds and gives us some toughness. I think he’s a valuable part to what we’ll try and do this year.’

Last season, Ongenaet’s role grew as the season progressed. Early on, the transfer from Belgium was a spot fill-in, averaging 9.4 minutes per game in non-conference play. But after Devendorf was lost for the season with a torn ACL and Boeheim was forced to shuffle his lineup several times, Ongenaet’s value extrapolated. The 6-foot-8 forward played 28 minutes per game over Syracuse’s final 15 games, recording at least eight rebounds in four of the games. In his final six games, Ongenaet was 18-of-26 (.692) from the field.

As far as this season’s lineup, nothing is set yet. Scrimmages at practice have mostly been jumbled conglomerations of players. At Midnight Madness, the forward was with what appeared to be the starting squad.

Whether he’s starting on opening night, Nov. 16, might depend on Devendorf’s health, which is still uncertain. The shuffling and toying of lineups is inevitable with a nine-deep team. But the routine probably won’t change for Ongenaet this season. At practice, he remains fundamentally sound, if not flashy – sliding quickly in SU’s 2-3 zone to put a hand in Mookie Jones’ face, only hoisting a shot if he’s wide open, crashing the boards for rebounds.

Now that his purpose on the Orange is clear – rebound – and he’s sure to keep getting playing time, Ongenaet’s confidence is beaming.

‘It’s a lot better than last year for me personally, because last year was all new for me,’ he said. ‘I know I wasn’t really a freshman, but I was pretty much a freshman. Everything was new to me. I put a lot of pressure on myself. Now I feel more comfortable and confident that I can be better and the team can be better.’

An Orange team starving for depth last season suddenly looks to have plenty of options. When a reporter asked Boeheim at media day who his sixth man may be this season, Boeheim pointed out how evenly minutes will be dispersed this year. It doesn’t necessarily matter who starts and who comes off the bench, the head coach said.

But Ongenaet’s role doesn’t change. His four-spot won’t be challenged.

‘When you have eight or nine guys, it’s not as important that you’re coming off the bench,’ Boeheim said. ‘Everyone wants to start, but it’s important that you play. We’ll play that many guys until we find that we can’t. … Obviously Kristof is the only guy who will play the four, and the other guys can play a couple positions. I think we have the right kind of depth.’

Later at media day, Ongenaet looked to his right at Andy Rautins’ entourage of press and then to his left toward Mookie Jones. This season’s new look has him buzzing.

‘We have a lot more strength outside at the 3-point line,’ Ongenaet said. ‘With the new freshmen coming in, they’re really good as well and have a lot of potential for this year. Overall, we can do a lot better than last year. We have the potential to get really far in the tournament.’

thdunne@syr.edu

Published on October 28, 2008 at 12:00 pm