THE ZONE WARS
Orange, Devils bring dueling defenses to Sweet 16
The vaunted 2-3 zone has already claimed three casualties in this unlikely Sweet 16 run that even the most ardent Syracuse supporters wouldn’t have predicted.
First was No. 11 Arizona State in a First Four game, then No. 6 TCU and lastly No. 3 Michigan State — explosive top 40-scoring offensive teams the defensiveminded Orange held well below their season averages to advance through the first weekend.
But now comes the ultimate test: No. 2 Duke and its array of NBA-bound prospects. The zone won’t faze the Blue Devils like it did the other three teams. They’ve faced it before; coach Mike Krzyzewski’s team beat the 11th-seeded Orange, 60-44, on Feb. 24 at Cameron Indoor Sta- dium — and they even play a 2-3 zone themselves to make up for their own defensive shortcomings.
“I think it might help a little bit, just because we know movements and positionings,” Duke senior Grayson Allen said the day before the Midwest Region semifinals in Omaha, Neb. “But at the same time, Syracuse’s zone is different. For the majority of the year you go up [versus] man-to-man teams. So you don’t prepare; you don’t have game preparation to go against the zone every day.
“We have preparation to play a zone against everybody, obviously, but as far as trying to execute against the zone, and the zone that’s as long as Syracuse’s is, it’s difficult to actually prepare for that.”
The same should be said about facing Duke. Led by Naismith Trophy finalist Marvin Bagley III, the multi-talented 6-foot-11 potential No. 1 pick in June’s NBA draft, the Blue Devils have won their two games in the tournament by a combined 47 points. Allen has found himself after an underwhelming season, averaging 18.4 points, 4.7 assists and shooting 39 percent from 3-point range over the last 11 games. Freshmen Gary Trent Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr. would be stars at most programs. With Duke, the duo are merely complimentary pieces. Each member of the starting five averages in double-figures. The Blue Devils are fourth (84.9) in scoring and seventh in distributing (17.8).
“Offensively, they’re the best team in the country,” Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said in a phone interview.
The Blue Devils (28-7) have won nine of their last 11 games, and are heavily favored to end this magical run by Syracuse (23-13), an 11¹/₂-point favorite by Vegas oddsmakers. Long odds, however, won’t faze the Orange. Few expected them to even get selected as an at-large team, let alone be 40 minutes away from the Elite Eight.
“People doubted us before we played our first game,” Syracuse sophomore and leading scorer Tyus Battle of Edison, N.J. said. “We’ve been playing with a chip on our shoulders, feeling we have something to prove. Duke’s a good team, but we know we can play against anyone, and beat anyone. We’ll
definitely be ready to go.”
The belief is there, even though the offense hasn’t been. Syracuse enters the showdown 317th in scoring (66.7), 338th in assists (10.6) and tied for 325th in 3-point shooting percentage (31.8), and is averaging 57.3 points and 37.7 percent shooting from the field in three tournament games, making this run all the more implausible. It has received better scoring balance of late. For so much of the year, junior Frank Howard, Battle, and freshman wing Oshae Brissett had to do all the heavy lifting. If all three didn’t play well, Syracuse struggled. Of late, freshman wing Marek Dolezaj, a Slovakian import, and 7-2 junior center Paschal Chukwu have emerged as at least threats.
“We’re expecting to see a com- pletely different team than we played last time,” Bagley said.
Neither team felt it played particularly well in the first meeting, especially Syracuse, which committed 17 turnovers, got to the free-throw line only six times, and shot just 31.6 percent from the field. No matter how well the zone limits Duke, a repeat performance like that won’t get it done.
“That’s something we can’t afford to do,” Boeheim said. “For us to advance, we’re going to have to play better on the offensive end.
“Unless we have a horrendous night, we can be in the game. We’ve proven that,” he added. “It’s a great group. They give you everything they have. It’s been fun to coach them.”