JEFF ALLEN GAME PREVIEW: SYRACUSE vs. GONZAGA
Two teams that were life and death to even get into the Big Dance square off tonight with one advancing on to the weekend’s
Elite Eight. The (21-13) Syracuse Orangmen struggled in non-conference play while legendary coach Jim Boeheim served
a suspension and then 1-5 down the stretch having people unsure of whether “The Cuse” even belonged. Win over Dayton
and MTSU (avoiding Michigan State in the process) still leaves the Orange as an unknown quantity at this level. Gonzaga got
off to a slow start in non-conference play and lost their best player to injury in January but the Zags (28-7) have gelled at the
right time and are currently playing their best ball of the year. The line at this writing is Gonzaga -5 with the total set at 135 1/2.
Syracuse is basically a five man team with the starters accounting for 62+ of the 70.4 ppg. that the Orange average. In fact the
Orange bench plays the second fewest minutes of any team in Division I. Michael Gbinije (17.8, 4.1, 4.4) is a 6’7″ combo gaurd
and Syracuse’s best player. Trevor Cooney (10.4, 6.4) is a talented 6’10” freshman that will improve as he fills out. Syracuse
still plays their vaunted zone defense well but is just No.322 on the defensive glass, one of the 20 worst teams in the country.
Big things were expected of the Zags but a slow start in non-conference play and the loss of 7′ foot big man Prezmek Karnowski
for the season after just five games was a crushing blow. Kyle Wiltjer (20.6, 6.6, 1.6) seems like he’s been around longer than
Timmy Chang played football at Hawaii and Domantas Sabonis (Arvydas’ kid, 17.5, 11.7) has become a beast in his sophomore
year. This is not a vintage Mark Few team by any means but one that is playing it’s best when it matters most and could finally
break through to the Final Four.
This is one of the tougher games in the tournament to call. Syracuse has led a charmed life to this point and will have to knock
down shots and stay out of foul trouble to stay in this game. As good as the ACC has been in this tournament this year, it is 0-2
against the WCC. The Zags have won seven straight since losing it’s senior night game to St Mary’s. This is only the third time
in Big Dance history that 10-11 seeds have met with the dog going 2-0. Our first inclination would be to look at the Zags but after
further consideration, we’re going to take our 5-0 record this week (through Thursday) and pass to fight again over the weekend.