Dick Vitale isn’t the only one that would like to see a Kentucky Syracuse match-up. I’m sure most of the nation would like to see the No. 1 and No. 2 team go head to head in the NCAA Finals.
Besides the Orange and Wildcats being the best two teams in the nation sports fans want to see a match-up of athleticism but more so see the hype behind the two favored teams in the tournament.
Kentucky and Syracuse currently have a 30-1 record. Syracuse’s only lost of the season came without their center Fab Melo, and Kentucky’s only loss of the season came at a buzzer beater to Indiana.
What does Syracuse has to do to beat Kentucky, or will the tournament favored winner, Kentucky take the cake? Hardly, at this point Syracuse is too powerful to be chartered, but they must be aware of Anthony Davis.
Syracuse will run into problems in two areas, one being with Anthony Davis, and the second rebounding.
Davis is a tremendous defensive player; he stands at 6’10 and weighs 220 lbs. Davis averages about ten blocks per game and is rumored to go down as one of the top ten best shock blockers in the college basketball. However, Davis is the star of the team, averaging the most PPG and the most RPG.
Syracuse own center Melo towers at 7-feet tall 244 lbs and went from playing two minutes per game, to averaging about 25 minute per game. In his sophomore season, his vast improvement allotted him to be a starter. Melo is a powerful player and is defensive minded.
The ultimate match-up, should come between Davis and Melo. But, the versatility of the Syracuse team is what can push them ahead to beat the Wildcats. Syracuse statistics for PPG, RPG, and APG have a list of six different players, two of which from the bench.
The bench is the most effective performing bench in the nation, which leave the Wildcats trying to decipher whom to block and win. On any given night CJ Fair can be the best scorer of Dion Waiters. The bench is unpredictable and deep.
As for Kentucky, their sole star player is Davis. In order for the Orange to beat Kentucky, defensively, they need to keep Davis on the perimeter. For a team that is used to playing in the paint and not as well on the perimeter this has to be a key concept to beating the Wildcats.
Otherwise, I have faith the Orange can trump the Wildcats, but let’s get through the Big East tournament first!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Syracuse chapter.