Once again the Big East is the premier conference in Men's college basketball for the 2008-2009 season. It has a surplus of talent and seven teams in the top 25, with four teams in the top 10.
While UConn, Louisville, Pittsburgh, and Notre Dame may all be excellent teams, there is another team that could be a sleeper to win the conference. That team is the Syracuse Orange.
Syracuse came into the season with high hopes after missing the NCAA Tournament two years in a row. The Orange are looking to get back to March behind the leadership of juniors Eric Devendorf, Arinze Onuaku, and Paul Harris. They are also looking for sophomore Johnny Flynn to show up.
So far, the 'Cuse leaders have done exactly what has been asked of them. Onuaku and Devendorf are both averaging 15 points per game and Onuaku has 8.4 rebounds per game. Harris is also averaging 12 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. Plus, Flynn has been sensational, averaging 21 points per game.
Now granted it is still way too early to project a Big East champion, but I think the Orange should definitely be considered contenders. They have two impressive wins, one against Florida and then an overtime shocker against Kansas to win the CBE Classic.
I feel that besides UConn, Syracuse is the team with the best chance to win the Big East. Unlike the other contenders in the conference, the Orange's big men, like Onuaku, stack up well against the Huskies' big men, including 7'3" forward Hasheem Thabeet. If the Orange can win the battle on the boards against UConn, they will be one of the few teams that are able to beat the Huskies.
So, look for Syracuse to hang with the UConn's and the Notre Dame's of the league and get back to the form of the 2003 National Championship team. This March, Syracuse will be playing in the NCAA tournament instead of watching it on the couch.
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about 1 month ago
Agree. Cuse is back! And can you imagine if the whole team stays for next year? WOW.
about 1 month ago
I think Cuse is poised for a great season and deep run in the tourney if they continue to play this well. You have to throw in Marquette and Villanova as two other teams who could stand in 'Cuse's way come conference play. Although neither of them are on the level of the 4 you mentioned, the Big East is deep and none of the lower teams can be taken lightly.
about 1 month ago
Ah the old sleeper conundrum. Don't get me wrong, I think Cuse is very good, better than Marquette and Nova but can a team really be a sleeper if there are 25 billion people out there saying "watch out for this team, they're a sleeper!" because that is exactly what is going on with Cuse this year.
"Unlike the other contenders in the conference, the Orange's big men, like Onuaku, stack up well against the Huskies' big men", that's just simply not true. I would say all of the top 4 teams in the conference have front courts better than Cuse. In addition to Thabeet, Blair, Samules and Gody would all destroy Onuaku. If Cuse is going to break into the top 4 it will be behind thier guards not their big men.
about 1 month ago
Not true,,,the only big man who played well against Onuaku was Thabeet, he outplayed every other center in the league . Arinze is slimmer, faster and even stronger this year. However the Orange have had trouble getting the ball down low to him.
They are not a sleeper, just a lot better than most think.
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