“Yeah, they are. I think they are. They seem to be, again, he was just taking it over last time we played them. And this year, you could tell he’s starting to implement kind of his philosophies and what he wants to do. And I think his guys are responding. Obviously everybody at this time of year is trying to figure themselves out and figure out who they are. But they’re tough. They guard, not only zone but in man. And they have some guys that are more than capable of having big nights. So they feel to be a more connected group this year.”
“I think the biggest challenge would be post position. And him maybe not being able to get him as deep as he would like off the initial duck ins for his initial catch. So he’s gonna have to work in different ways to get his catches where he wants them. So that’s something that we’ve been studying on film. He’s been studying on film, and he’ll be prepared to attack and Felix is strong as well. You know? He may be a little more wiry, but I mean, he’s got some wiry strength and he’ll be able to create some angles and kinda do what he does.”
Team Statistics (via KenPom)
Tennessee:
Syracuse:
Tennessee:
Points: Chaz Lanier — 17.7 PPG, 46.9 FG%, 49.1 3PT%
Rebounds: Igor Milicic — 6.7 RPG, 4.7 DRPG, 2 ORPG
Assists: Zakai Zeigler — 7.9 APG, 3.6 TOPG, 33 MPG
Syracuse:
Points: JJ Starling — 19.8 PPG, 46.8 FG%, 29 3PT%
Rebounds: Donnie Freeman — 9.2 RPG, 8 DRPG, 1.2 ORPG
Assists: Eddie Lampkin — 3.2 APG, 2.7 TOPG, 27.3 MPG
Last Five Games
Tennessee:
- 78-35 win versus UT Martin
- 77-62 win versus Baylor (Bahamas)
- 64-42 win against Virginia (Bahamas)
- 103-68 win versus Austin Peay
- 92-57 win versus Montana
Syracuse:
- 82-72 win versus Cornell
- 79-74 loss against Texas Tech (New York City)
- 70-66 loss against Texas (New York City)
- 104-95 win versus Youngstown State (2OT)
- 74-72 win versus Colgate
Prediction
A year after going on the road to face North Carolina in the ACC-SEC Challenge, the Vols aren’t getting the same treatment this season as they prepare to host a Syracuse team that is one of the worst teams in power five early in the season.
The theme of the year so far for Syracuse is close games as the Orange have earned close wins against overmatched foes at home as well as close losses against a pair of solid power five teams on a neutral floor. However, Syracuse has not faced a test as challenging as Tennessee this season and this one is on the road.
Two aspects of this game I’m curious to see how they unfold are turnovers and Tennessee’s offensive rebounding. The Vols are great at turning foes over but have had some turnover issues themselves. Syracuse does not turn it over much but they also don’t force many turnovers. Then on the glass, Tennessee is one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country but Syracuse is the top defensive rebounding team. How those battles shape up will largely decide how the game goes.
I think Tennessee wins this one relatively comfortably but Syracuse covers the spread.
Tennessee 78, Syracuse 62
