Syracuse Basketball vs. Virginia Tech: 4 Keys to the Game

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Feb 3, 2015; Syracuse, NY, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies guard Jalen Hudson (23) drives the ball with Syracuse Orange guard Michael Gbinije (0) defending during the second half of a game at the Carrier Dome. Syracuse won the game 72-70. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /

Close Out on Shooters

Virginia Tech isn’t a great outside shooting team overall, but they do have a couple of guys who can get hot in a hurry. Zach LeDay, their leading scorer, shoots over 42% from 3-point land. He only averages 1.6 shots per game, but he makes them count.

The big threat is Justin Bibbs. Bibbs is a 50.5% shooter from 3-point range and has already drained 49 of them on the season. Last year, he hit 4-8 against us on his way to 22 points, which was his career-high at the time.

Syracuse needs to lock him down and know where he is on the court at all times. Buzz Williams is going to use lots of misdirection to try and spring Bibbs for open looks. Don’t be surprised if they run a lot of off the ball screens for him. I’d also expect them to try and work the ball into the interior and then when the defense collapses kick out to the wings to get him open shots.

I expect Syracuse to shift their zone to wherever he is at all times. Since he’s their primary 3-point threat, and he killed us last year, I would be shocked if SU lets him have more than one or two decent looks from the perimeter. The only way I can really see him beating us is if he’s draining very deep 3s. Hopefully that’s not the case.

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