Inside the Loud House
Fansided

Syracuse Basketball vs. Duke: 4 Keys to the Game

By David Stone

Feb 28, 2015; Durham, NC, USA; The Cameron Crazies get pumped up before the start of the Duke Blue Devils game against the Syracuse Orange at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2015; Durham, NC, USA; The Cameron Crazies get pumped up before the start of the Duke Blue Devils game against the Syracuse Orange at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
Syracuse Basketball
Jan 16, 2016; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Tyler Roberson (21) gets fouled by Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward Greg McClinton (11) in the second half at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Syracuse defeated Wake Forest 83-55. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /

More Than One Player Has a Big Offensive Game

It seems like every game, Syracuse rotates who plays incredibly well. Lately it’s been Cooney or Gbinije taking turns, and in this game we are going to need them both to step up.

Cooney needs to continue his hot shooting and light it up against Duke. I guarantee they are going to be blanketing him all game, so he is going to need to keep nailing some of those tough, off-balance 3’s he’s been making lately. He’s also going to need to keep making those mid range shots, because that will really open up the floor for the rest of the team.

Gbinije needs to get out of his shooting funk. Over his past nine games, Gbinije is just 13-61 from behind the arc for a paltry 21% from 3. He hasn’t looked comfortable shooting the ball at all and seems to be rushing his shot at times. He’s even missed the wide open ones, leading me to believe it’s a mechanics issue. I’m hoping he’s spent some time with McNamara working on that, as he needs to get on track fast.

I’d also love to see at least one of Richardson, Lydon, or Roberson step up and have a big game. Ideally they will all play well, but we can’t expect everyone to have solid games, as that just doesn’t happen often for any team. Even so, if Richardson or Lydon can get hot from the outside, it gives us a much better chance at staying close with Duke.

Home/Syracuse Basketball