Syracuse Basketball vs. St. Bonaventure: 6 Things to Watch

Nov 13, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange guard Trevor Cooney (10) greets teammate Tyler Roberson (21) during a time-out against the Lehigh Mountain Hawks during the first half at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse defeated Lehigh 57-47. Photo Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Beast-Mode Roberson

Last year, Tyler Roberson was at times an unstoppable windmill of athleticism on the glass. He had two separate 17-rebound games and nine total double digit rebounding games. He was a constant threat on the weakside glass on offense and was like a magnet to the ball on the defensive end.

Against Lehigh, he managed only five rebounds. Granted, he only played 21 minutes, but that’s still pretty underwhelming for him. Especially considering he added about 15-20 lbs. of solid muscle in the off-season. Tyler Lydon only played seven more minutes in the game, but finished with 11 rebounds in comparison.

I think a big part of the problem was the complete lack of an inside game against Lehigh. Instead of having rebounding opportunities on 5-18 footers, he was trying to rebound off missed threes, which tend to be much more erratic and surrender far more long rebounds that end up in guards hands.

I’m hopeful that with an increased presence in the paint this game, Roberson will have increased opportunities for offensive rebounds and easy putbacks. He really needs some of those easy shots to fall to gain some confidence. After a zero point performance in game one, he needs to come out swinging and get into the flow early.

Don’t be surprised to see him at the high post a lot in the game. With Coleman in the low blocks, Roberson should get lots of opportunities to show off that mid-range game that he has worked on. I’d also like to see him put the ball on the floor and take it to the rim. We’re going to need some of that as the season progresses, so might as well practice it now.