With history to be made by the 2006-07 Georgetown Hoyas, it is fitting that the game that could clinch a share of the Big East regular season title and a program record 12th straight win comes against rival Syracuse in the Carrier Dome. After beating Pittsburgh to take the lead in the Big East on Saturday, a victory tonight will give Georgetown all of the necessary tie-breakers to secure the No. 1 seed in the Big East Tournament.
Despite a Syracuse team that has played weaker than many previous incarnations, the Orange will present a formidable challenge, not only given their rivalry with the Hoyas, but also the status of their postseason hopes. Even after four straight wins, Syracuse currently resides firmly on the bubble after a pre-conference schedule yielded no wins of note. A win tonight, paired with an earlier win over Marquette, would give them two quality victories on the season, as well as 10 wins in the Big East, which should be enough to get them into the tournament provided they don't lose to Villanova and again in the first round of the Big East Tournament. Coupling that desire with a quick turnaround after Saturday's game, bad traveling conditions on Sunday for Georgetown and an arena in which the Hoyas have not won since 2002 is probably why Washington Post columnist Mike Wilbon picked the Orange to upset the Hoyas on Tony Kornheiser's radio show Monday Morning.
The Hoyas do have momentum, having won 11 in a row, as well as a sterling road resume. Winners of 9 of 11 games on the road this season, Georgetown owns the most visiting victories of any major conference team this season. Those two losses came to Duke (at Cameron Indoor) and to Pittsburgh (at the Peterson Events Center) two of the toughest venues in college basketball. The Carrier Dome, with its high crowd capacity and vacuous feel, could be an equally daunting environment, especially considering that Georgetown will likely have to have a solid game from behind the arc to win. In seven of Syracuse's eight losses, they allowed eight or more three pointers to their opponents.
While Georgetown is third in the Big East in three-point field goal percentage (just behind Syracuse), the Hoyas have only scored eight or more threes three times during conference play this season (Cincinnati, DePaul and Notre Dame). The Hoyas prefer to pound the ball inside to center Roy Hibbert and floating post man Jeff Green. To do that, they will have to dissect the Orange's trademark 2-3 zone. Expect Green to cut frequently to the foul line. If he gets the ball in the high post, Green will be a extremely problematic for Syracuse. He's been very adept of late at knocking down mid-range jump shots, and his vision and passing skills will allow him to dump it down to the low post or to an open teammate behind the arc if his shot isn't there.
Jon Wallace, who arugably turned in the best game of his career against Pittsburgh, will have to provide some shooting touch from the perimeter, as the streaky Summers has been cool of late, hitting just one of his last 13 three-point attempts since a torrid four of six clip in wins over Marquette and West Virginia.
Defensively Georgetown will have to bottle up Big East scoring leader Demetris Nichols and Eric Devendorf. The Hoyas have employed a very effective 2-3 zone of late, but don't be surprised to see defensive catalyst Patrick Ewing Jr. take on Nichols in man-to-man sets. Syracuse freshman Paul Harris could be an X factor for the Orange. Head Coach Jim Boeheim has largely kept the highly-regarded Harris in check this season, but after scoring 16 points against UConn Feb. 17, he was rewarded with 32 minutes of playing time against Providence last Saturday. He only scored six points in that time against the Friars, but he has had a knack for getting to the foul line this season. Boeheim may insert him if he is looking to get Green or Hibbert to the bench with foul trouble.
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