Both Georgetown and Syracuse have struggled so far in the first month of the season. But who will find a way to win this matchup of former Big East rivals?
TV schedule: Saturday, December 10th, 1:00 pm ET. ABC
Arena: JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, New York
Last season the Georgetown Hoyas won just six total games, including going winless in all of Big East play. One of those victories was at home against Syracuse, 79-75. Of course, there isn’t anything you can take away from that matchup considering that most of the players involved are gone.
That’s especially true for the Hoyas, who are now 5-5 on the season, coming off a 75-68 victory over Siena. Once again, the backcourt leads the way for them, led by 20 points from Brandon Murray, along with 18 points and eight assists from Primo Spears and 16 from Jay Heath. They’re the three leading scorers on the team, with Akok Akok and Qudus Wahab providing the interior defense.
Georgetown still isn’t elite by any means but at least offensively, has plenty of firepower. But that’ll go up against the zone for Syracuse (5-4, 1-0), coming off a 95-66 blowout over Oakland. Five players were in double figures for them, with both Jesse Edwards and Joe Girard each having 18 points to lead the way. Judan Mintz is the third key piece for the Orange, scoring on average 13.9 ppg, good for 3rd on the team.
The Orange don’t have much scoring potential outside of these three players, so this matchup will ultimately come down to which “Big 3” produces more. It’s also important to note that the Hoyas rank among the highest in the country in two-point attempts, while also giving up a ton of threes. That arguably plays in the ACC team’s favor in this matchup.
Syracuse is the team with a slight hope of an at-large bid but that would die with a home loss to Georgetown. After suffering a loss a year ago in D.C., look for the Orange to even things up this weekend.
Prediction: Syracuse 80, Georgetown 66