NCAA Prediction: No 2 Syracuse Orange vs St John's Red Storm
Saturday, February 04, 2012
by Joe Rodriguez
Fab Melo will re-enter the Syracuse Orange lineup when the Orange visit Madison Square Garden on Saturday for an in-state showdown with St Johns Red Storm.
The 7-foot center missed the last three games for the second-ranked Orange, who looked out of sync in their first loss to Notre Dame but have rebounded for two straight wins.
Syracuse is still showcasing offensive efficiency, but missed Melo's presence around the rim, as it was outrebounded by 16 a week ago against West Virginia. Another fresh body only adds to one of the nation's strongest rotations, as Syracuse can go 10-deep.
St. John's, on the other hand, starts five freshmen and has just two quality reserves. The Red Storm, though, seem to have finally found a groove, winning two straight in the Big East.
- Syracuse Orange @ St. Johns Red Storm
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 4, 2012
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
TV: 12 p.m. ET, ESPN, ESPN3.com
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Justbet Sportsbook currently have the Orange listed as 13-point favorites versus the Red Storm.
Syracuse Orange (22-1): Dion Waiters has been almost as absent as Melo from the Syracuse stat sheet. The Orange's second-leading scorer is shooting just 25 percent in his last three games and was even benched Jan. 23 at Cincinnati. St. John's, though, presents a favorable matchup for a slashing guard like Waiters. The Red Storm allowed West Virginia's Kevin Jones to enter the lane at will en route to 26 points and 14 rebounds late last month. St. John's will try to keep pace with Syracuse up and down the floor, but it might backfire against a team that thrives in transition and leads the nation in steals.
St. John's Red Storm (10-12): St. John's has found a nice balance from its top-flight recruiting class, as both Moe Harkless and DAngelo Harrison have each gone for at least 29 points in the last two games. A full-court, up-tempo attack was successful in an 87-81 at DePaul on Wednesday, but the Red Storm could run out of gas against a deep team like Syracuse. In their last meeting, St. John's run-and-gun style earned it a five-point halftime advantage before Syracuse's fresher legs in the second half led to a 79-73 win for the Orange.
1. St. John’s is 2-1 with an all-freshmen starting lineup, but is 0-8 against ranked teams.
2. The 2-3 zone could present major problems for St. John’s in the halfcourt set. The Red Storm rank last in the Big East with just 10.7 assists per game.
3. Melo had his coming out party in that victory over St. John’s last March with a then-career high 12 points, including two critical buckets in the final two minutes.
BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Orange 75, Red Storm 59.
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dangelo harrison - dion waiters - fab melo - kevin jones - madison square garden - moe harkless - st johns red storm - syracuse orange
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