Syracuse is 15-1, tied for the second-best start in school history under Jim Boeheim.
Orange Puts Unbeaten League Record On The Line Saturday At Rutgers
1/9/2009 6:44:17 PM | Men's Basketball
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The #11/9 Orange (15-1, 3-0) put a six-game winning streak and an unblemished BIG EAST Conference record on the line when it plays at Rutgers (9-7, 0-3) on Saturday, Jan. 10. Tip off is slated for 7:30 p.m. at the RAC. Syracuse’s 15-1 mark matches the second-best start through 16 games for the Orange under head coach Jim Boeheim. Only the 1999-00 SU squad had better start, going 16-0 to the start the year.
Saturday's game will be televised on the BIG EAST Network and can be seen live locally on Time Warner 26. Fans can also listen to the action via the Syracuse ISP Sports Network and its flagship station TK 99 (99.5 FM). The audio stream of the radio broadcast will also be available on SUathletics.com as part of Orange All Access. The game is also available free to any student on campus (in fact, to any student on any U.S.
ABOUT SYRACUSE
Junior guard Andy Rautins (Jamesville, N.Y.) led the Orange in scoring for the fourth straight game in SU’s 85-68 win against DePaul on Wednesday. Rautins scored 17 points and made five more 3-pointers to raise his season 3-point percentage to .402 (49-122). He is averaging 19.0 ppg in the Orange’s three BIG EAST games. Rautins also passed out six assists in the DePaul victory.
While Rautins has been hot from the outside, junior center Arinze Onuaku (Lanham, Md.) has been getting the job done inside. Onuaku has three double-doubles in the last four games, including 14 points and 10 rebounds against the Blue Demons. Onuaku is second in the nation in field-goal percentage this season (.694, 86-124). Only Patrick Patterson of Kentucky has a better mark (.713, 117-164). Onuaku has been complemented nicely by sophomore forward Rick Jackson (Philadelphia, Pa.). Jackson is averaging 11.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in his last six games. He also leads the conference in field-goal percentage against BIG EAST opponents at .800 (12-15).
Junior Paul Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) became the 50th player in school history to score 1,000 points with 14 against DePaul. He also contributed nine rebounds, narrowly missing a double-double. Harris is averaging 12.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in two career games against Rutgers.
Syracuse and Marquette are tied for team scoring honors against league foes. Both clubs are averaging 81.3 ppg in BIG EAST action. The Orange also has been the best 3-point shooting team against conference opponents, hitting at a .480 clip (24-50). Most of that success has been due to Rautins, who is 19-for-33 (.576) from long distance in league contests.
SCOUTING RUTGERS
Syracuse faces a Rutgers club that is in the midst of a treacherous stretch of games. The Scarlet Knights began its brutal stretch on Dec. 28 with a pairing against top-ranked North Carolina. Three nights later, Rutgers hosted #3 Pittsburgh, and three nights after that it was a road encounter with #2 Connecticut. On Wednesday, Rutgers hosted #18 Marquette. The Scarlet Knights entered that stretch with a 9-3 record, but four straight losses to the nationally-ranked foes has dropped the club’s mark to 9-7 overall and 0-3 in the BIG EAST.
Rutgers coach Fred Hill is in his third season at the helm and has compiled a 30-46 mark.
Freshman guard Mike Rosario (17.6 ppg., 3.7 rpg.) has emerged as a conference rookie of the year candidate. Rosario had a squad-best 22 points versus Marquette. He is the only member of the club who has started all 16 games. Freshman forward Gregory Echenique (9.5 ppg., 8.5 rpg.) is another promising newcomer who has already contributed to the Rutgers cause. Senior guard Anthony Farmer (9.6 ppg.) and sophomore guard Corey Chandler (8.2 ppg.) are also top scorers.
THE SERIES
Syracuse has a 33-9 advantage in the overall series with Rutgers, including an 81-59 triumph last season. The series margin is a slimmer 12-8 in games played at Rutgers. The Orange has won the last seven encounters with the Scarlet Knights.
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