Oklahoma State vs. Syracuse: 2019-20 basketball game preview, TV schedule
Oklahoma State and the Syracuse Orange meet on Wednesday night in neutral territory, as the NIT Season Tip-Off gets underway at Barclays Center.
TV Schedule: Wednesday, November 27, 7:00 pm ET. ESPN 2.
Arena: Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Two programs that have started the year positively will lock horns on Wednesday evening in tournament action. Oklahoma State and Syracuse will face each other in the opening round of the 2019 NIT Season Tip-Off from the Barclays Center. The Orange are fortunate enough to be able to stay in-state for the tournament, as the Cowboys make the journey up to the Empire State.
Combined, both teams are 9-1 on the season with Syracuse the only team to record a loss, which came in their opening night face-off with the defending national champion Virginia Cavaliers. Putting that aside, both teams have had very efficient starts to the year and will both fancy their chances at recording a tournament win this coming week.
Before this match-up tips off, the other Semi-Final of Penn State against Ole Miss will take place. These teams have had equally as good starts to the year. The Nittany Lions are 5-0, whilst the Rebels sit at 4-1. This tournament will give the four teams an opportunity to see how good they really are at this point in the season, as each match-up should be a closely contested one.
Friday will see the winners and losers of the Semi-Finals facing off in both the 3rd place game and then the Final. Looking at the match-ups now, you could pick any combination of teams to play each other on Friday and you’d have a decent chance of guessing right. This should be an interesting bunch of games.
Syracuse enters the tournament on the back of a sensational blowout win over Bucknell on Saturday afternoon. The Orange picked up their fourth win of the season in impressive fashion, as they beat the Bison by 51 points on the back of 56.1/48.3% shooting splits which saw Elijah Hughes and Buddy Boeheim combining for 43 points. Defensively this Orange side is going to give the best of teams problems, but if they can continue to shoot the ball well against more premier opposition, then Jim Boeheim‘s side is really going to be trouble.
For Oklahoma State, they could also be a threat this season. In a tricky Big 12, the Cowboys could be one of the dark horses, and if they can get a few big wins within the conference, then they too could be a threat. They haven’t really faced a huge side as of yet, but they’ve got the job done on each outing, which is the most important this early on in the season.
Scoring-wise they haven’t been great with 71.2 points per game, led by Lindy Waters III with 13 PPG. But, they’ve managed to limit opponents to just 60, which is tied-53rd best in the country. Yes, they’ve played lesser opponents, but it’s still impressive. And a tough defense is something Syracuse isn’t going to like – the Orange are going to have to continue playing offense as they have in the last couple of games if they’re going to get past the Cowboys.
Syracuse averages 17.6 assists per game right now, their ball movement has been the predominant factor in getting their offensive game to click. For a team that’s had so many struggles over the last couple of years, it’s good to see them finally knocking down shots with ease at times.
Next. 2019 NIT Season Tip-Off preview. dark
This match-up is going to prove to be the biggest challenge for the Orange since opening night, and they’ll have to continue to play efficiently on the offensive end if they are to advance to the Final. Oklahoma State will come into the game with confidence too, and it should make for an intense match-up, with both sides thinking they can get the win.