Lieberman: Looking forward to the Big East game of the year

The biggest game of the year in the Big East is Saturday.

No, silly, not DePaul vs…. The biggest game of the year in the Big East is Saturday.

No, silly, not DePaul vs. Rutgers, who combine for five Big East wins (for the record, Rutgers has four). I’m talking about Villanova at Syracuse at 9 p.m.

This game could very well decide it all, the Big East regular-season championship is on the line.

Villanova could tie Syracuse at 13-3 in the conference, and own the tie-breaker with a head-to-head win. But Syracuse could put itself two games ahead of Villanova with two to three games left for most teams.

The Carrier Dome is expecting 34,000-plus for this game, with some students camping in the dome overnight.

Yep, this game is huge.

Mark my words, this game will turn into a track meet during some stretches. The team that handles those stretches best will win the game.

Often times last Sunday, many of us Pitt students saw Villanova try to force Pitt into a transition game. The Wildcats are comfortable ditching the half-court set and running. Syracuse hasn’t shown all year they can do the same at a similar level as the Wildcats.

Another thing to watch in this game is how Villanova handles Syracuse’s 2-3 zone. It’s key in every matchup against the Orange, but Villanova has show a particular affection to breaking the zone.

Outside shooting is key, and Villanova has plenty of that, averaging 37.5 percent from beyond the arc. But so are dribble-drives and jump stops that pull defenders out of their zones. Villanova excels at this.

Here are two matchups to look for:

Guards

Syracuse has a J.J. Redick-esque 3-point threat in senior Andy Rautins. Plus, many overlook his 4.6 assists per game. That’s more than Villanova senior Scottie Reynolds averages, but Reynolds averages 19 points per game. Syracuse uses a rotation at point guard, starting freshman Brandon Triche, then subbing in sophomore Scoop Jardine. Triche is more of a scorer, while Jardine tends to be a distributor. It will be interesting to see when coach Jim Boeheim subs in Jardine. Either way, Villanova has an edge because of experience with junior Corey Fisher at the point. As Jim Boeheim himself said in a teleconference, “They have the best backcourt tandem in the country, and Scottie Reynolds is as good a guard as we’ve had in this league.”

Advantage: Villanova

Forwards

Syracuse freshman Wesley Johnson is a player of the year candidate. Seriously, watch this guy play and you’ll see why he’s an NBA-talent right now. Johnson averages 15.8 points per game, and gets them every which way possible. Also, the trio of Rick Jackson, Arinze Onuaku and Kris Joseph for the Orange is superb. All are big, physical and experienced players. The Wildcats don’t have much to match as far as depth, but junior Antonio Pena is a great scorer and rebounder that could collapse Syracuse’s 2-3 zone to leave open looks on the perimeter.

Advantage: Syracuse

Prediction

The crowd will be raucous, and Syracuse is going to be jacked for this one. A 9 p.m. game in front of a national audience will do the trick. I think Syracuse is primed for a big night. In the end, Syracuse’s offense will carry the team, not its defense. The Orange win, and lock up the regular-season title 78-69.

Tip-Ins

It’s starting to become a theme each week, a bullet point for a random sports thought. But, how about your USA Hockey team? Yes, I care greatly about hockey and you should too. This team is a great story, a team made up of 28 Maxime Talbots’, willing to sacrifice anything for a win. They’ve got grit in players like Chris Drury and Brooks Orpik, glitz in Patrick Kane and Zach Parise and the best U.S. goaltender since Mike Richter in Ryan Miller. They’re fun to watch, and I hope they get another crack at Team Canada in the finals this Sunday.

Check out Cincinnati forward Lance Stephenson’s dunk against DePaul Wednesday night. Absolutely, huge, as in 8.6 on the Richter scale huge. Notice the Heisiman-like stiff arm to the face.

Has anyone ever used two forms of “richter” in back-to-back paragraphs?

Awards:

Big East Player of the Week:

Kemba Walker, Connecticut – Walker scored a career-high 29 points and grabbed nine rebounds in Connecticut’s win at then No. 3 Villanova. He followed that up with 16 points in a win at Rutgers

Big East Team of the Week:

Connecticut – Thanks mostly to Walker, the Huskies are the Big East team of the week. Two wins, one a huge one against Villanova to help their tournament chances, have the Huskies back on track in the Big East.

Big East Matchups to Watch:

Georgetown at West Virginia – The other big matchup in the Big East this weekend features two ranked teams in Morgantown. The Mountaineers will come into this game after playing just one game in a week. Georgetown is going to look inside to Greg Monroe a lot in this one.

Who’s Hot:

Samardo Samuels, Louisville – Samuels averaged 25 points and 4.5 rebounds this week. He scored 36 points, the most by a Louisville player in eight seasons, in a 91-89 double-overtime win over Notre Dame.

Who’s Cold:

West Virginia – Following a triple-overtime loss to Pitt, losing to the suddenly thriving Connecticut didn’t help the Mountaineers standing in the Big East