The Syracuse basketball team hosts Wisconsin in the Carrier Dome at 7 pm tonight with their unbeaten record on the line.
Nov 27, 2015; Paradise Island, BAHAMAS; Syracuse Orange forward Michael Gbinije (0) looks to drive as Texas A&M Aggies guard Admon Gilder (3) defends in the second half during the 2015 Battle 4 Atlantis championship game in the Imperial Arena at the Atlantis Resort. Photo Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Syracuse is 6-0 and coming off a pair of huge wins in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. Wisconsin are 3-3 and have fallen out of the rankings after having back-to-back Final Four seasons the past two years.
On paper, this looks like a game Syracuse should be able to win relatively easily, but don’t count out the Badgers. Coach Bo Ryan is tremendous at getting the most out of his players and you can bet that the whole team is fired up for this game. It’s a chance for them to get their season back on track.
After losing Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekkar to the NBA, Wisconsin is a team in flux. There is no one or two players that stand alone like last year. The team is led in scoring by Bronson Koenig, a 6’4″ junior guard who is averaging 16 points per game. He hasn’t done all that much else other than score, and has yet to record a single steal this season.
Nigel Hayes is probably the most complete player on the team. At 6’8″, he’s been a solid offensive option for the Badgers. Although not shooting the ball all that well, he has the most assists on the team and is also a decent rebounder.
Two other players with some size are 6’8″ Vitto Brown and 6’9″ Ethan Happ. Brown is averaging 10 points and 6 rebounds a game, while Happ has added 10 points and a team leading 7.6 rebounds per contest. These two, combined with Hayes, form a decently sized frontcourt for Wisconsin that could test the Syracuse interior defense.
So what are the keys to this game? There are four main areas that I think will be of crucial importance for Syracuse to win. Let’s take a look at each of them and break down what Syracuse needs to do to come out with a victory.