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On Saturday Syracuse hosts ACC rival Duke at the Carrier Dome in a rematch from last year’s best game in college basketball. Last season the Orange and Blue Devils went back and forth in an overtime thriller. Down three points, Rasheed Sulaimon dribbled down court and pulled up from 22 feet to bury a straight on three as time expired. Syracuse was able to win in overtime by exploiting an undersized Andre Dawkins defending Jerami Grant.
This year the Sulaimon-less Blue Devils come to Syracuse with little depth, much like the Orange. What Mike Krzyzewski’s team lacks in depth is made up for with talent. Senior leader Quinn Cook is averaging 14.7 points per game and has shot the ball well lately from distance — 44.73 percent over his last six games to be exact.
This game will have one of the best matchups in the country on display with Rakeem Christmas and Jahlil Okafor going head to head. Although Syracuse will play 40 minutes of 2-3 zone, Okafor will frequently be met by Christmas on the low block.
Christmas is an agile big — he’s able to create space and angles to the bucket with his quickness, whereas Okafor relies on great footwork and pure strength to score. Expect Duke to get the ball to their freshman center early to try and get Christmas in foul trouble. Syracuse doesn’t have anyone with experience who can back up Christmas at the center spot, so staying out of foul trouble will be key for Christmas and the Orange.
Many people feel as though Christmas has been snubbed as a national player of the year candidate. If there were ever a time to prove that he belongs in the conversation, it would be Saturday against the consensus No. 1 overall pick in this summer’s NBA Draft.
Michael Gbinije has played a great stretch of basketball. The jack of all trades has 78 points, 17 rebounds, 15 assists and 13 steals over his last four games. Gbinije will have to put together another brilliant performance against his former team for Syracuse to have a chance to win.
Syracuse has seen improved play from its bench recently. On Wednesday, B.J. Johnson was able to knock down four three-pointers at Boston College, and Ron Patterson added eight points, four rebounds and two assists in last week’s win over Virginia Tech. Syracuse will need to get both sophomores to produce off the bench in this game, but expect the Syracuse starters to get the bulk of playing time in Jim Boeheim‘s fastidious zone.
This will be a good game in front of 35,000-plus Orange fans, but don’t expect this matchup to eclipse last year’s captivating finish. Duke wins in the sold out Carrier Dome by double digits, 79-68.
James Szuba is a college basketball writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesSzuba.
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