Can Someone Buy Moussa Keita a Sandwich?

Baye Moussa Keita was a defensive force Wednesday night inside the XL Center as the #17 Syracuse Orangemen finally found the winning formula at the expense of the Connecticut Huskies.

Keita played a season high 27 minutes (he has previously logged 26 minutes on numerous occasions) as he helped to slow down the #6/#7 ranked team in the nation. Baye Moussa Keita finished with 11 rebounds 6 steals 2 blocks and shot 2 of 4 from the field for 4 points. Baye also handed out 1 assist before fouling out with 3:10 left in the game and Syracuse clinging to a 4 point lead.

Unfortunately for Baye, he made what should have been his 3rd block of the game when he two-hand blocked Alex Oriakhi's take to the rim. At the worst, it could have been called a jump ball, but the officials called a phantom foul and sat Keita down for the remainder of the game.

Compare that with our other freshman center, Fab Melo. Melo finished with 3 minutes and 1 foul. Actually, there isn't much to compare here.

Is Fab Melo still in Syracuse's starting rotation to merely keep up appearances? Fab Melo is averaging 7.4 minutes and 1.7 rebounds per game in Big East play. Keita averages 13.5 minutes and 3.3 rebounds per Big East contest.

Keita has had his poor performances, 0 rebounds in 21 combined minutes from Seton Hall games and 0 rebounds in 6 minutes against Pittsburgh, however that can most likely be attributed to Baye Moussa Keita's thin frame.

Which brings me to my next point.

Can someone Buy Moussa Keita some super sized value meals? If you see him on campus, pick him up a couple pitas or a few Jimmy Johns Sandwiches. Get this guy some large fries and a bag of chips. You will be doing your part to help the SU basketball team.

If we can get Keita's weight up he won't be called for as many fouls under the basket, he's fouled out 5 times this season, and will be an even more effective rebounder in a rough and physical Big East conference. Herb Pope (and Jeff Robinson) essentially owned the glass on Syracuse for two games even though he's 2" shorter than Keita. Possibly it's because he has nearly 20 pounds on him?

Keita has 3 more seasons to develop as a Syracuse big man. With Rakeem Christmas coming to campus next season he will have to compete even harder for minutes in the middle. Additionally, a full season of NCAA basketball will definitely aid in the development of Fab Melo.

If Keita wants to maintain playing serious minutes for Syracuse, he will undoubtedly be in the weight room for much of the off season. Perhaps the SU dining hall circuit can pitch in and load up some extra mashed potatoes and all you can eat cheese burgers on his dining tray when he comes in for lunch?

Every little bit helps.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Aaaaand We're Back!

Heading into last night's Big East showdown against the #6/#7 UCONN Huskies Jim Boeheim had never lost 5 straight games as head coach of the Syracuse Orangemen. Thankfully, he still hasn't. Syracuse went into Connecticut and walked out with a much needed 66-58 victory. The Orangemen hadn't won on the road against UCONN since the 1999 season.

Syracuse managed to overcome not scoring a single point in the game's opening 5:31 and managed to take their first halftime lead since January 15th against Cinci when Rick Jackson slipped home a shifty hook shot as time expired on the opening frame, giving SU a 26-25 halftime lead.

In the first half Syracuse's defense of Huskie star Kemba Walker was amazing. Walker was held to just 5 points in the first half. Syracuse had allowed opposing teams to score 40+ points in the first half three straight games heading into last night's contest, however UCONN scored just 25 points in the 1st half. Walker finished the game with a season low 8 points, a job well done by the Orangemen's guards at the top of the 2-3 zone.

Coming out of the halftime intermission, it appeared to be the Brandon Triche show. Triche scored the first 7 points for Syracuse in the first 2:17 out of the gate, and helped push Syracuse's lead to 33-27. As Connecticut mounted a valiant comeback, cutting Syracuse's lead which had ballooned to as many as 9 points down to a mere 1 point with 4:56 left to play, Brandon Triche swished a 3-point jumper from the corner to put the Orangemen back up 4 points and provide a much needed cushion against the #6/#7 team in the nation as Syracuse held on for the win.

Baye Moussa Keita played by far his best game in his very young Orangeman career. Despite fouling out (on an absolutely brutal call late in the game) Keita pulled down 11 rebounds, made a season high 6 steals, scored 4 points and added 2 blocks while playing a season high 27 minutes for the Cuse. Keita was changing shots in the lane, using his long arms to swat pass attempts into the center of the zone, and playing like a man possessed to help Syracuse knock off one of the best teams in the nation and putting an end to the Orangemen's 4 game losing streak.

At the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Fab Melo played a mere 3 minutes and his only statistical achievement in the game was his 1 personal foul.

Rick Jackson recorded his 15th double-double of the season, scoring 13 points and pulling down 13 rebounds to lead the Orangemen. Kris Joseph began the game extremely off, however managed to make a few big plays down the stretch. Joseph, the Orangemen's leading scorer on the season, finished 3 of 11 from the floor for 11 points.

Once again Scoop Jardine's shooting woes continued to mount, as he shot 2 of 11 from the field, however Scoop made his foul shots in the final minutes of the game and grabbed a key rebound as the game clock wound down.

Brandon Triche lead Syracuse in scoring with 16 points, while shooting 2 of 7 from 3-point range. He made his shots when it counted though.

Up next for the Orangemen are the USF Bulls on Saturday at 2PM in Tampa, Fl. The game will be televised live on the home of the Big East Network, SNY. With eight games remaining on the Syracuse schedule, there's plenty of hard work left to do.

After a trip down to Tampa, Syracuse will play Georgetown, Louisville, and West Virginia, with the Louisville match up being played on the road. Syracuse (19-4, 6-4 Big East) can not afford to have a let down against the Bulls, as the schedule will not be easing up for the Cuse any time soon.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Is This Rock Bottom ??

Well, that sucked. The Syracuse Orangemen's 18 game winning streak seems like it was all a dream right about now as the Cuse is in the middle of a 4 game losing streak. Watching Duke lose to St. Johns yesterday helped me keep my head up, but in the end Syracuse has lost to two teams that we haven't lost to in years. Literally. Syracuse hasn't lost to Marquette since the 1980's.

Another slow start. Unfortunately or fortunately, however you want to look at it, Morgan State and Norfolk State played the longest 3 minutes of basketball in recorded history and Cuse fans watching on ESPNU were tortured until they were able to join coverage around the under 12 minute time out in the first half.

Marquette jumped out to a 10-3 lead and was in control the entire first half. When the half-time buzzer rang the Orangemen found themselves down 11 points. Once again, Syracuse was getting beat on the glass and being careless with the basketball. On Syracuse's final four possessions of the first half they turned the ball over three times.

The most frustrating part of the second half was when Syracuse was down one with the ball in Marquette's end and COULD NOT INBOUND THE BALL. Inbounding the ball is certainly day 1 stuff, however this Syracuse team could not overcome the inbound pass on two occasions with a chance to take the lead. The Orangemen were able to tie the game, but could never get over that hump.

Once again Syracuse was out-rebounded, although this game was by a narrow margin (2). Baye Moussa Keita led the Cuse in boards with 7, and added 4 points and 2 blocks before fouling out. He played some major minutes for the Orangemen and helped out on the glass on a day when Rick Jackson was held to just 4 rebounds.

Rick Jackson finished the day 6 of 7 from the floor for 14 points, however he was held to a season low in rebounds. Kris Joseph led the Orangemen with 18 points. The most interesting person on the floor was Scoop Jardine, however.

Scoop Jardine finished with a career high 13 assists and 13 points on 5 of 12 shooting. He also was credited with 5 turnovers, although in true Scoop fashion of late, it felt like many more. There were times late in the second half when I honestly felt worried every time Scoop touched the ball, and since he's the team's point guard, that's not a good feeling to have!

Speaking of point guards, Dion Waiters did not spend one second off the bench in this one. While Jim Boeheim took to the airwaves last week and said there was no issue with Dion Waiters, it's extremely curious to notice he didn't get any playing time on Saturday. Mookie Jones picked up 4 first half minutes while another regular contributor, James Southerland, also sat on the bench for the duration of the game.

In Southerland's place, freshman C.J. Fair had another strong outing. In 15 minutes of action Fair finished the day shooting 5 of 7 from the floor for 10 points and picked up 3 rebounds and 3 blocks. C.J. Fair should continue to see increased minutes, as his shot selection is always in high percentage areas and he is not afraid to pick up rebounds in the lane, something James Southerland has struggled to do of late.

Where do we go from here?

The loss, Syracuse's 4th straight, drops the Orangemen to 5-4 in Big East play and 18-4 overall on the season. It also drops Syracuse to 7th in the Big East Standings. The Cuse took another hit in the rankings this week, coming up 17th in both the AP & ESPN/USA Today Top 25 Polls. This week is a tremendous opportunity for Syracuse to get off the canvas and salvage a season which once seemed so promising.

The Orangemen will first travel to #5 UCONN on Wednesday at 7PM. Syracuse will follow that up with a trip (which is by no means a vacation) to Tampa, FL to take on USF at 2PM. If Syracuse can find a way to win these two games, that will do a lot towards increasing the confidence around this program.

On a side note, if there was one class I wish all SU players would enroll in, it would be "How To Draw a Foul." It's been 5 years since I was a student at Syracuse University, is that course still offered?

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Should Syracuse Be Worried?

Syracuse basketball is 3-0, and on the surface it looks like the team has picked up where it left off prior to the unthinkable loss to Butler in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. However, when you take a closer look it appears that not everything is going according to plan.

The Orangemen are averaging 11 turnovers per game. Mind you this is against Northern Iowa, Canisius and Detroit. Brandon Triche is leading the team with 8 turnovers, while Kris Joseph Scoop Jardine and Rick Jackson each have 6 turnovers through three games. If Syracuse can not protect the basketball versus early non-conference opponents, they could be in for a rude awakening once teams like Michigan, North Carolina St. and Michigan St. come up on the schedule in a few weeks.

The most glaring disappointment is in the teams shooting, particularly in the first half. Coupled with the turnovers, opponents have held Syracuse to points of 23, 32 and 25 in the first half of games. All at home. All against considerably weaker opponents. What's to make of this?

First off Syracuse is settling for outside jumpers extremely early in the shot clock. Playing these smaller teams early in the schedule, Syracuse needs to run the offense. The guards have to feed the ball inside to the big men, and if the other team collapses underneath, they have to kick the ball out and penetrate.

At this point when the ball gets kicked out, the guards are hoisting up 3-pointers like they are Gerry McNamara or Preston Shumpert, when in reality they don't have the range or ability to be taking that many shots from long range. Against Detroit Syracuse attempted thirty 3-pointers!! They made seven.

The truth is Syracuse is too athletic and too big to be averaging twenty-four 3 pointers per game against lesser competition! They need to use their size and speed to get to the rim, not waste it standing at the perimeter a la Donte Greene. James Southerland is 6'8" and he has taken 13 of his 20 shots from the floor behind the arc! He needs to take that length to the rim and be in position to get some rebounds and some easy buckets. Especially a guy who went 1-8 from 3 against Detroit in just 16 minutes.

Kris Joseph currently has taken 11 of his 23 shots from the floor from 3-point range (47.8%). He has made just two of them. Since when is Kris Joseph a 3-point assassin? Last season Joseph took 41 3's and hit 9 (22%). Now I don't doubt that Joseph has been working on his outside shot, and I guess that its a good time for him to practice taking 3's against bad teams, but come on! Through 3 games he has taken 12 shots from inside the 3-pt. arc? Four shots per game?! That's not going to get it done.

Fab Melo hasn't been the star-studded freshman that many pundits lead us to believe, and frankly I am not surprised. If you read The Cuse Connection season preview, we believed that Riley would be the starting center as Melo would need time to adjust to the college game. He has only played basketball in America one season. Almost every freshman in the country has played four years of high school basketball, Fab Melo has played one. However, circumstances being what they are Melo was thrust into the starting roll and he should not be crucified as a "bust" just yet. He is simply finding his way and its taking some time. "One and done" are words that will be removed from his vocabulary. They should be replaced with defensive positioning, footwork, and patience.

There have been some pleasant surprises. Scoop Jardine is evolving into a leader on the floor and Rick Jackson has been an absolute beast for the Orangemen. Off the bench, Baye Moussa Keita is probably the most pleasant surprise of the season. Its scary to think where we would be without Keita. Versus Canisius Baye Moussa Keita dominated the paint so hard he picked up 15 rebounds in just 17 minutes on the floor.

C.J. Fair has also been a welcome addition to the team. He is one of the few players on the team that gets the ball and drives to the hoop, and it shows in his shooting percentage. Fair is 8 of 12 from the floor and 5 of 7 from the foul line. He is currently averaging 7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game. He is also one of the few players on the team not to attempt a 3-point field goal yet this season.

As long as Syracuse can settle down with the ball, run the offense, and get easy points inside rather than taking an average of twenty-four three pointers per game, Syracuse can be successful this season. The team defense has been good and can only improve once the Orangemen start clicking on all cylinders offensively. The Orangemen have held opponents to just 32.6% from the floor and 22.7% from behind the arc. Opponents are also averaging 14 turnovers per game. Those are good numbers, however our offense needs to become more efficient.

With just William & Mary standing between Syracuse and the tougher part of the schedule, now is the time to get these kinks out of the system and find our true offensive game. To answer the question posed in the headline, should we be worried? Honestly, if we keep trying to take 20-30 three pointers per game, yes. However, once this team realizes that there are no Andy Rautins' or Gerry McNamara's standing on the perimeter and that they have to lower the shoulder and take it to the hoop, the Orangemen will be just fine.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

Detroit Titans Travel to Carrier Dome

The Syracuse Orangemen will play their third game in five days tonight when the Detroit Titans enter the Carrier Dome. Tip-off is at 7PM and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3. Detroit comes to Syracuse from the Horizon League, and lost their season opener to New Mexico 63-54. Both teams combined for 40 turnovers and Detroit shot 4-22 from 3-point range.

Detroit lost 8 players from last year's squad that went 20-14. Head coach Ray McCallum's teams generally play strong team basketball, and usually lead the Horizon League in most defensive categories, including steals, blocks, rebounds, 3-point defense and field goal percentage allowed.

Detroit center Eli Holman lead the Titans with 15 points 13 rebounds in the losing effort. Holman, a 6'10" 255 pound junior, will be the first big center Fab Melo will match up against in college, and it will be interesting to see how he handles playing the big man. In his first two college games, Fab Melo fouled out and was held to just 6 total points. Last season Holman averaged 11.8 points and 8.9 boards.

Ray McCallum, (6'1" 185 pounds) a McDonald's All-American and head coach Ray McCallum's son, turned down scholarship offers from Arizona, Florida, Oklahoma and UCLA to play at Detroit for his father. "Little Ray" averaged 22.5 points 7.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game in his senior year of high school last season, and took his team to the state finals where he dropped 32 points with 8 rebounds and 7 steals.

Other players the Orangemen will want to keep an eye on are Chase Simon (6'6" 210 pound junior) who can shoot and penetrate, and Nick Minnerath (6'8" 220 pound junior) who is also a shooter and a very good athlete. Minnerath was a third-team JUCO All-American last season.

For the Orangemen, they are coming off a 86-67 victory over Canisius on Sunday. A game that was followed by a post-game rant from head coach Jim Boeheim, where he called this Syracuse team the "most overrated team he's ever had." Syracuse has been plagued by two slow starts against two weak opponents (Northern Iowa and Canisius), which saw them with just 3-point half time leads in both contests.

Rick Jackson has been leading the Orangemen in the low post this season, averaging 15.5 points per game and 10 rebounds per game. Kris Joseph is second on the team in scoring so far this season, averaging 12 points and 6 rebounds per game. Brandon Triche, who Boeheim said wasn't being aggressive enough after the season opener, scored 16 points on Sunday after a 5 point effort against Northern Iowa.

Fab Melo has struggled adjusting to basketball at the college level, having fouled out of both games so far this season. Off the bench, Baye Moussa Keita has been a real nice surprise. On Sunday against Canisius, Keita grabbed 15 rebounds to lead the Orangemen and chipped in 6 points on 3 of 5 shooting.

Also coming off the bench has been freshman C.J. Fair. He is averaging 8.5 points over his first two games of his college career and scored 11 points with 4 rebounds on Sunday.

With a win tonight, Syracuse will improve to 3-0, however most Syracuse fans will be looking for a strong start from the team. After Boeheim's comments on Sunday, one would expect Syracuse to come flying out of the gates and get all over Detroit.

Check back with The Cuse Connection for a complete post game report and analysis.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

"Overrated" Syracuse Team Defeats Canisius

On Sunday afternoon the Syracuse Orangemen defeated Canisius College 86-67 in the Carrier Dome in front of 20,454 fans. However, what happened on the court was nothing compared to Jim Boeheim's post-game press conference.

Jim Boeheim got things started early in the press conference, saying he needed to "clarify some things," and then told the room of reporters that "we have no depth. Everybody talks about 'this guys a great player,' we don't have one guy who's made a significant play in a college basketball game." Then he asked the media assembled to give him one player who has done anything coming off the bench this season.

Jim Boeheim went on to say that "we have four guys," meaning Rick Jackson, Scoop Jardine, Brandon Triche and Kris Joseph. "We're going to go where our veterans take us... you can count on that."

"Watch the tape of the first half tonight, and tell me how many games you think we're going to win with that depth that was out there... We need to get realistic. Right now we're the most overrated team that I've ever had. Right now. And I'm a little shocked that every body's bought into this whole thing."

"We have got a long ways to go, and we have a lot of work to do." Jim Boeheim made it very clear. However, it's a little curious to hear from a man who told us that Fab Melo was going to be a national rookie of the year candidate and that Dion Waiters was one of the best freshman guards he's ever had at Syracuse.

Apparently the team got a little ahead of themselves and needed to be taken down a few pegs. When considering the first half performances in the two regular season games we have played this season, he has a point.

Syracuse held just a three point lead for the 2nd straight game at halftime, and looked extremely sloppy with the ball, especially around the rim. The Orangemen were held to just 23 points in the first half of the Northern Iowa game. On Sunday, Syracuse scored 32 points in the first half. Considering the level of competition, that's completely unacceptable. Rushed 3-pointers and blocked shots inside are no way to run the offense. Given Syracuse's extreme size mismatch inside, how are they settling for outside shots?

Things weren't all bad for the Orangemen on Sunday, they did win the game by 19 points and outscored Canisius 54-38 in the second half. Rick Jackson finished the afternoon with 17 points to lead the Orangemen and added 13 rebounds 3 assists 2 steals and 4 blocks with just 2 turnovers. Kris Joseph struggled early and finished with 10 points on 3-9 shooting from the floor with 7 rebounds and 2 assists.

Scoop Jardine, who scored zero points in the opener against Northern Iowa, dropped 13 points and had 8 assists on 5 of 11 shooting including 2 of 3 from 3-point land. Brandon Triche, who Boeheim criticized following Friday's game for not being aggressive enough, shot 6-13 from the floor, 4-8 from three, and finished with 16 points.

Off the bench no one could keep up with Baye Moussa Keita. Keita grabbed a team high fifteen rebounds and added 6 points on 3 of 5 shooting in just 17 minutes. Baye Moussa Keita had 9 offensive rebounds, however was 0-4 from the foul line after not missing a shot from the charity stripe in the exhibition schedule. C.J. Fair also contributed off the bench, giving the Orangemen 11 points in 18 minutes to go along with 4 rebounds.

Dion Waiters was 1-5 from the floor and finished with 3 points in 13 minutes of action, afterwards Boeheim called Waiters a "non-factor today." Another struggling Orangeman was James Southerland who shot an ugly 1-9 from the floor in 9 minutes of action with just 2 rebounds and 2 points. His defense wasn't much better and played a very uninspired game.

Lastly, there is Fab Melo. In just 13 minutes of action Fab Melo did his best Daryl Watkins impression and fouled out of the game, for the second game in a row. He finished with 4 rebounds and 2 points. In two regular season college games, the only thing that Melo has 10 of is fouls (6 points, 7 rebounds, 0 blocks).

As we stated in our season preview, Fab Melo just has played just 1 year of American basketball in his life. There is definitely going to be an adjustment period and right now other teams are going right at him and forcing him to make a play. Going from high school to college and playing as a freshman is hard enough as it is, and considering he only has 1 year of high school ball in this country, that adjustment is going to be even harder.

The Syracuse Orangemen's next game is Tuesday in the Carrier Dome when they host the Detroit Titans. The Titans lost their season opener to New Mexico 63-54. Tip-off on Tuesday is 7PM. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3.

photo courtesy of syracuse.com

DaShonte Riley Opting for Surgery

Late Friday news came out that Syracuse University center DaShonte Riley will be undergoing surgery to mend his injured right foot. The injury is believed to be an old fracture, possibly even suffered late last season. Trainer Brad Pike said the surgery will either remove a bone fragment or "fixate the bone."

This essentially will end the 7' sophomore's season and leave Syracuse extremely thin at the center spot. The Orangemen now will have to rely on incoming freshman Fabricio de Melo to fill the shoes left by center Arinze Onuaku (graduated) and the now injured Riley.

Head coach Jim Boeheim said "Ricky's going to play forward for the most part this year, if not all the time. Which leaves us with the two freshmen." The other freshman Boeheim alluded to is Baye Moussa Keita out of Oak Hill Academy. Many saw Keita's freshman year at Syracuse to be spent learning and watching from the bench while adding much needed muscle, however now he may be required to play a much larger role this season.

Keita, who was born in Senegal, is 6'11" and roughly 210 pounds. The offensive side of his game has been described as "raw," however he is very athletic and runs the floor very well. He has a very long wingspan which will fit in great in the 2-3 zone for the Orangemen, and is a very sound shot blocker and a great jumper. He needs to add muscle to his 6'11" frame if he wants to compete inside with the very physical centers in the Big East. While many observers hoped that Baye Moussa Keita would get this season to increase his strength and offensive game, it has become clear that he will not be afforded that opportunity.

While there is a possibility for a January return for DaShonte Riley, it is unlikely that it occurs. Riley expressed concern of his own for a January return, stating "I don't know what kind of condition and what kind of shape I'll be in January. So, more than likely, I'll take the year off."

And just like that Fab Melo is our starting center for 2010/2011.