Rutgers vs. Syracuse: 2020-21 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
Syracuse will travel to the RAC to take on Rutgers in the Tuesday nightcap of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
TV schedule: Tuesday, December 8, 9:30 pm ET. ESPN2
Arena: Rutgers Athletic Center (The RAC) in Piscataway, New Jersey
The annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge gets underway tonight, and, although the Illinois/Duke showdown highlights the nightcap of Tuesday’s showing, there is another overlooked game slated at the same time between old Big East rivals in Rutgers and Syracuse.
Rutgers (3-0) enters the tilt ranked 21st nationally, coming off dominant double-digit wins over Sacred Heart, Fairleigh Dickinson, and Hofstra. Returning 80.5% of their scoring from a team that went 20-11 and was primed to make their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1991, the Scarlet Knights have had high hopes to start the year – particularly with the return of Geo Baker and Ron Harper Jr.
The pair has not had an opportunity to play with each other much yet this season, with an injury sidelining Baker in the Sacred Heart game. But that has not stopped Harper Jr. from going on an offensive tear. The 6-6 junior has averaged a team-best 21.0 points and 7.7 rebounds in the opening stretch and is coming off a 15-point performance against Hofstra.
He is not alone, either. Montez Mathis and Jacob Young have both helped fill the hole left by Baker’s absence, averaging 15.3 points each on a team that has been dominant from the inside with a 61.4% clip from inside the arc. They have not been nearly as effective from beyond the arc with Baker’s absence, but they have been a defensive force inside the paint, recording 6.7 blocks per game – the sixth-best mark in Div. I.
The Scarlet Knights will meet an undefeated Syracuse Orange squad that is coming off back-to-back dominant wins over Niagara and Rider after nearly suffering a season-opening upset to Bryant. Jim Boeheim has been forced to operate without his son and leading scorer, Buddy, due to COVID-19 protocol – but Syracuse has not suffered a misstep yet.
Scoring has been balanced for the Orange, who – in addition to Boeheim – feature four other double-digit scorers in Alan Griffin (16.7), Quincy Guerrier (16.3), Joseph Girard III (11.7), and Marek Dolezaj (10.3), as well as two more averaging nine points apiece. Girard III, especially, is coming off a career day after draining six three-pointers in Syracuse’s last outing against Rider.
That game, in particular, has been Syracuse’s best showing yet. Boeheim’s squad shot 54.9% from the floor, draining a spot-on 50% (15-30) of their shots from beyond the arc. As a team, they have not been stellar offensively in terms of their shooting – but have been a force on the defensive end, limiting teams to 34.0% on field goals (16th-best) and 26.0% on three-pointers (46th-best).
This will be the toughest challenge for each team thus far, and both teams have motivation heading into this game. The Scarlet Knights are hungry to pick up their first marquee victory in a season that should – hopefully – yield an actual NCAA Tournament appearance after they were robbed of one last season. The Orange, meanwhile, are a fringe NCAA Tournament squad that got started late due to COVID-19 protocol – and a win here would go a long way.
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With Baker still, presumably, out, it is incredibly important for Harper Jr. to step up and produce yet another monster game – especially to combat the quartet of double-digit scorers for Syracuse. The key for the Scarlet Knights is Mathis and Young – if they can both chip in between 15-20 points over Syracuse’s tenacious defense, Rutgers has a good opportunity to pull away with this one.
Prediction: Rutgers 76 – Syracuse 70