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

Jan 20, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange center Chinonso Obokoh (35) makes a pass between the defense of Boston College Eagles forwards Aaron Brown (22) and Will Magarity (11) during the second half at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse defeated Boston College 69-61. Photo Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Chino to Continue his Defensive Dominance

I’m sure many of you are reading that headline with a scoff and are ready to berate me. But truth be told, Obokoh had the best game of anyone on defense against Lehigh. He blocked four shots and had four defensive rebounds. He absolutely locked down the paint against one of the better big men in the country.

Let’s get some perspective on this so that maybe you won’t think I’m quite as crazy. Obokoh entered the first half on Friday when the score was 9-8 Lehigh. When he exited, it was 22-10. That’s a +/- of 11. In the second half, he entered after Lehigh had crawled back into the game at 39-30. When he left again, it was 55-43. So all in all, he finished with a +14 on the night. That was second highest on the team behind Kaleb Joseph’s +16.

That is incredibly impressive for a guy who was considered the scapegoat of the team and more of a liability than an asset. It certainly is amazing what a difference a year can make. Although many are surprised by his quality play, there were definitely glimpses of it last year. He played 16 solid defensive minutes against Boston College. He played another 12 quality minutes in the win over #9 Notre Dame.

Look for Obokoh to log some more minutes this game, especially if Coleman gets into foul trouble again. I wouldn’t expect him to do all that much on the offensive end, as that’s just not what his game is tailored to. But he could end up being a very solid defender, similar to what Baye Moussa Keita was in his Orange tenure. I expect another solid performance from him this game as he looks to build on that confidence he got against Lehigh.