SAN JOSE, Calif. — Allen Crabbe became most famous for a viral video in which his coach shoved him in the chest.

The player who would soon be named Pac-12 Player of the Year, the one who averaged 18.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game as a guard, was known more for a heat-of-the-moment exchange with Mike Montgomery than he was for those gaudy numbers.

The YouTube page views grew exponentially, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, which only detracted from one of the nation’s best — and least-known — players.

“Crabbe is a tremendous shooter,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “One of the best shooters in the country.”

So while he is most commonly recognized for being on the receiving end of Montgomery’s anger-laced outburst in mid-February, Syracuse fans and basketball fans around the country will soon become familiar with his game. Crabbe is the leading scorer and third-leading rebounder for the Golden Bears, who advanced to the Round of 32 with a 64-61 win over fifth-seeded UNLV, and whether or not the Orange can contain him will be a major barometer indicating SU’s chances of reaching the Sweet 16.

Crabbe, a 6-foot-6 guard whose lanky frame resembles that of Michael Carter-Williams, arrived in Berkeley, Calif., three years ago as a top-60 recruit, according to ESPN. He was known as a lethal shooter, a player whose stroke was sweet but who needed to expand his game in other areas.

He made at least two 3-pointers per game in both his freshman and sophomore seasons, relying on outside shooting for the majority of his points. He was named the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year in 2011 and was a first team All-Pac-12 selection as a sophomore.

Slowly but surely his game grew. He worked diligently on dribble penetration, understanding that any time he could slice through the opposing defense more opportunities would open up for his teammates. His scoring average jumped from 13.4 points per game as a freshman to 15.2 points per game as a sophomore.

This year it rose to 18.7.

“He scores the ball so easily, so effortlessly,” teammate Justin Cobbs said. “He’s working on being a complete player. I think he’s a great slasher. He’s trying to get to the basket and getting a lot of assists, getting his teammates involved.”

Crabbe did just that in Thursday’s win over UNLV, chipping in four assists to go along with his 19 points and nine rebounds. It was his 10th game this season with four or more assists after just seven such games all of last year.

“It’s been a nice progression for him,” Montgomery said.

But Crabbe remains a shooter at heart, and he admitted that his eyes lit up a bit when he saw there was an opportunity to play Syracuse, a team that runs exclusively a 2-3 zone defense, on Saturday. He made three or more 3-pointers in a game 10 times this season, including a game with five 3s in a win over Southern California.

It’s something the Syracuse players are aware of, and Carter-Williams mentioned the ability of California’s guards to shoot the ball just minutes after defeating Montana.

The question becomes whether or not the Golden Bears can move the ball well enough to create open looks. Though Crabbe is excited to play against the zone, he made sure to emphasize that the one played by Syracuse is atypical of many others around the country.

Boeheim’s ability to recruit long, athletic wings — no player on SU’s back line is smaller than 6 feet, 8 inches tall — creates the illusion of open shots that wind up being easily contested because of the length.

“You’ve got to find the open shots they leave open in the zone,” Crabbe said. “We’ve got to be patient on our offense and just execute well. We can’t force things against them because they’ll take advantage of it.”

Triche said he had not seen any film on California, nor had he watched them play during the regular season. That tends to be the case for talented players on the west coast, flying under the radar while the eastern seaboard sleeps.

But Saturday, Crabbe will become a household name in a new part of the country, invading the east coast at 9:40 p.m. EST.  And if he plays like he has all season, those new viewers are likely to be impressed.

Said Cobbs: “Allen is the complete basketball player.”

Published on March 22, 2013 at 9:12 pm

Contact Michael: mjcohe02@syr.edu | @Michael_Cohen13