Men's Basketball Begins Conference Road Slate At Cincinnati
1/8/2008 1:25:34 PM | Men's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Orange (12-3, 2-0) faces its first conference road test of the year when it plays at Cincinnati (6-8, 1-1) on Wednesday, Jan. 9 at 8 p.m. at Fifth Third Arena. Syracuse is riding a six-game victory streak and has won its first two BIG EAST Conference encounters, including an 89-77 win at home against USF on Saturday.
Voice of the Orange Matt Park and former Post-Standard columnist Bob Snyder will have the call on the Syracuse ISP Network’s flagship (TK-99.5 FM) with the pre-game show beginning an hour before tipoff. The radio network broadcast is available live on Orange All-Access. In addition, Wednesday's game will be televised live on ESPN Regional.
The Orange averaged 82.5 points per game in its first two league victories and shot a conference best 49.6 percent from the floor. Center Arinze Onuaku (Lanham, Md.) is a major reason for the team’s dynamic offense. Onuaku posted a double-doubles in both games. He tallied a career-high 23 points to go along with 13 rebounds in the league opener against St. John’s and had 16 points and 12 boards versus USF. In the process, Onuaku raised his season field goal percentage to 68.5 percent, which ranks fourth nationally, and landed on the BIG EAST Honor Roll.
The conference also honored Orange freshman Donte’ Greene (Baltimore, Md.), selecting him as its Rookie of the Week on Jan. 7. Greene averaged 21.5 points in his first two conference outings, finishing with 22 versus the Red Storm and 21 against USF.
Another major reason for the Orange’s recent success has been its effort on the glass. Syracuse lists third in the conference in rebounding at 42.1 per game and owns a +7.7 rebounding margin over its opponents. The Orange used a 53-36 rebounding advantage to stifle USF with four players corralling at least six boards.
Board-getting should be a big factor in Wednesday’s game. While Syracuse is one of the top rebounding squads in the the conference, Cincinnati is last at 35.1.
Mick Cronin is in his second year as head coach of the Bearcats. He has a 17-27 record at the school and is 86-51 overall. A former assistant at Cincinnati and Louisville, Cronin was the head coach at Murray State for three seasons before his hiring by the Bearcats.
Cronin got his team off to an exciting start in league play as Cincinnati made a big splash in its conference opener, winning at Louisville, 58-57, on Jan. 1. This past Saturday, the Bearcats stumbled at St. John’s, 70-58.
Wednesday’s pairing with Syracuse is its conference home opener.
Syracuse has a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series between the two schools. The Orange pulled out a 77-76 win in the Dome last year, the most recent meeting between the two foes. All four previous pairings were BIG EAST contests.
Sophomore guard Donte Vaughn, Cincinnati’s leading scorer (15.9 ppg.), is coming off a 24-point performance against the Red Storm. Senior forward John Williamson ranks first in rebound average (6.4) and second in scoring (9.7 ppg.).
