The rumors of Syracuse’s demise in the ACC have been greatly exaggerated after an exciting 86-83 win in overtime against Wake Forest Tuesday.
Syracuse (13-4, 4-0 ACC) used a balance of three-point shooting and inside dominance to upend the Demon Deacons (9-9, 1-4) and remain one of two unbeaten teams in conference play (the other is Virginia). The win makes it seven in a row for the Orange.
Granted, the Syracuse’s opponents in conference have a combined record of 2-12, but the team has shown resiliency up to this point and looks like an entirely different squad than the one that started the season with an uninspired 6-4 record.
But that good fortune came with a price.
On Monday, the athletic department announced that after tearing his ACL while attempting to receive a pass on a breakaway, freshman Chris McCullough is done for the season. He started every game this season, and the team will miss his 9.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Playing in McCullough’s stead is Tyler Roberson. He conjures up images of Jerami Grant with his athletic rebounding ability, but his scoring isn’t quite there and will need some work.
Also different for the Orange is the point guard position.
Freshman Kaleb Joseph took the reins of the offense after the hasty departure of Tyler Ennis last season. After looking a bit green in his first stanza of Orange basketball, Joseph has seen a dramatic decrease in his minutes over the Orange’s seven-game win streak and now serves in a committee at the position with Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney.
Beyond a lack of depth, however, Syracuse’s problems are diminishing and manageable. The emergence of Rakeem Christmas as a legitimate All-America candidate and the maturation of the team’s offense are promising. Should the trend continue for Syracuse, the sunny skies of an NCAA bid will replace the gloomy forecast of an NIT appearance.
The Orange have to get through the ACC schedule first. Here are the team’s concerns in conference play going forward.
from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1C97xhf
via IFTTT January 14, 2015 at 05:34PM
0 comments:
Post a Comment