Q&A with The Orange Report

It’s my theory that when you don’t know a whole lot about something or someone, don’t even try to come off as an expert.

On that token, we bring you the Syracuse Orange. Other than watching a few fleeting games (the Cleveland State loss, a couple regular season games and their two OT thrillers in the Big East Tournament), I haven’t seen a ton of this exact Syracuse team.

I do know that Jonny Flynn is an absolute terror, they’re undersized up the middle and run (and will always run) a dynamite zone defense.

So, while I bone up on the Sun Devils’ next opponent, we’ve pulled off the nearly-world-famous PFN Gmail Question and Answer session.

Today, the meeting of the minds is with Matt over at The Orange Report. You should go check out his top notch coverage of the Orange’ 1st round win over Stephen F. Austin while I study up and report back later. As always, my answers to his questions are there as well.

PFN: Be honest…how mentally and physically exhausting was that 6-OT classic against Connecticut for you?

TOR: Let me put it this way: I was sitting in a chair for the entire game and I was exhausted, so I can’t even begin to imagine what it was like for the players. That whole game was unreal: 8 players fouled out, Syracuse got down six points in one of the overtime periods, and didn’t hold an overtime lead until overtime number six. There were at least twenty times when you would have thought they were out and then somehow they held on. By the end of the game we had a 6-7 freshmen forward playing center and a walk-on playing. There is no other game I have seen that was that thrilling or insane. The biggest thing it showed was their will to win and an ability to compete with a talented team -  two things they rarely showed in Big East play against the top teams in the conference.

The only thing I can compare that game is to a really great baseball playoff series, like Yankees-Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS or the Diamondbacks-Yankees World Series in 2001. So many times the momentum shifted away from your team, and you thought you had no shot, just to storm back and feel like victory was guaranteed. I’d equate it to cramming a seven game baseball playoff series into 4 hours, if that makes sense.

PFN: Tell us a little about what makes Jonny Flynn such a dangerous asset.

TOR: He is one of the most complete players in the country, and one of the top pure point guards. His game revolves around speed- if he gets the ball in transition, look out. He can finish in traffic, get into the lane to find Andy Rautins or Eric Devendorf for three and he can create his own shot or knock down a three. He is also an underrated defender, likely because of the stigmata of playing the 2-3 zone. Flynn can d up opposing point guards and has enough lateral quickness that he rarely gets burned by his man. When Syracuse switches out of the zone he turns any turnover into a fast break. The most amazing thing about him is his endurance. Last season when we lost Devendorf and Rautins to ACL injuries, Flynn played nearly every minute in conference play, averaging 35 minutes a game. This season that went up to 37 mins per contest, including 67 in the 6-OT game.

The best thing about Flynn is his ability to inspire and lead his teammates, and he does this while only being a sophomore. He is out there clapping his hands and firing up his teammates on the defensive end. Everyone on the floor has complete faith in his abilities and looks to him in crunch time. It has been a pleasure to watch him develop over the last two years, and with every passing game we get the feeling that he won’t be wearing Orange next year (unless the Bobcats draft him). It’s a double-edged sword - if he does well, that most likely means that Syracuse is going far in the tourney, but the chances increase he will be a top draft pick. While we’d all like him back next year, we’re just hoping he leads us as far as his small frame can take us.

PFN: Jim Boeheim used the 2-3 Zone to perfection to take his 2003 team to the National Championship. ASU now runs a variation of it to much success but we’ve seen how it can be beaten. How do you beat the Syracuse zone?

TOR: While everyone says that the easiest way to get Syracuse out of the 2-3 is to hit 3-pointers, the truth is to knock down your mid-range jump shots. Like every zone, there are spaces an offense can attack and find success. The best way to get us out of the zone is to get the ball into a distributing forward at the free throw line who can shoot or pass with efficiency. If he can knock down a few of those shots, Arinze Onuaku or Rick Jackson will have to cheat up from the middle of the backline, which leaves the wings open to anyone cutting to the hoop. If you can hit 3-pointers, even better, but it is an effective mid-range attack that will have us switching to man.

PFN: Jeff Pendergraph is no stranger to high-quality big men and he’ll see another one in Arinze Onuaku on Sunday. Rate Onuaku in terms of where he ranks among other F/C in the Big East and what makes him so dominating.

TOR: If there is one word to describe Arinze it would be inconsistent. He hits 65% of his shots, and has a great touch inside, but injuries and confidence have plagued him. At the start of the year he was challenging Hasheem Thabeet and Luke Harengody as the best big man in the conference, especially with his early season performances against Florida and Kansas. But down the stretch he faded, finishing with single digit scoring efforts in 4 of his last 5 games before the NCAA tourney. His free throw shooting is atrocious (18.05% since Big East play began or 13-72) and it causes him to get pulled in any close games during the last 5 minutes. Onuaku can take over a game offensively if he is feeling confident, but he can also disappear and find himself on the bench.

The question with Arinze and our entire frontcourt is which version will show up? Paul Harris has been just as inconsistent as Onuaku, but Friday against SFA he grabbed 16 rebounds. Rick Jackson is prone to disappearing at times as well, but had a good game today (although every shot of his was a dunk). The biggest question is Paul Harris’ hand (had to get his thumb x-rayed after the SFA game) and Kristoff Ongenaet’s stomach flu. If the Orange are missing those two (who are their two best pound-for-pound rebounders), ASU could find success on the offensive glass. My guess is both should be playing, even if not at 100%.

PFN: Have you or will you ever, if given the chance, no matter how much you love him, pull a Charlie Steiner and just punch the Orange right his giant face?

I’ve never even considered that. I wouldn’t, just because I think there is a secret dark side to him that nobody ever sees. Behind that smiling facade is a piece of produce you don’t want to mess with.

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