All-time series: Syracuse leads, 92-31

Last time they played: Syracuse opened last season at home against Cornell. Jimmy Boeheim scored the first basket of the game, on a 3 from the corner. But the Orange cruised to a victory, winning 77-45 to open the season. Matt Morgan and Jimmy, who both return, were the only Big Red players in double figures. Tyus Battle scored 18 and Oshae Brissett scored 11. Geno Thorpe’s high point in his short Syracuse tenure came against Cornell, as he scored 12 points off the bench.

The Cornell report: The Big Red would’ve been a highly effective team before the dawn of the 3-point line. They rank Top 20 in the country in 2-point field goal percentage, per KenPom.com. But Cornell ranks about 300th in the country from beyond the arc, making its overall offense inefficient.

The Big Red offense runs through guard Morgan, who averages about 24 points per game. He’s also shot more than 50 percent from 3 for the season, making him the optimal zone buster for Cornell. The 6-foot-2 Morgan also leads the Big Red in rebounding. The only other double-digit scorer for Cornell is Jimmy Boeheim, son of Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim. He averages about 13 points and five rebounds per game, and has made the second-most 3s for Cornell, with five makes from downtown.

Cornell has eight players average at least 14 minutes a game, and even Jimmy plays just over half the available minutes. The Big Red will rely on its supporting cast to supplement Morgan. They’ll face a significant size disadvantage against Syracuse, as Jimmy and fellow forward Josh Warren are both 6-foot-8, the tallest players to play double-digit minutes per game for Cornell.

How Syracuse beats Cornell: Really, it begins and ends with shutting down Morgan. The Orange shouldn’t have problems beating Cornell, a team which lost to Colgate by 16. The Orange beat Colgate by 21. The only hopes the Big Red will have of hanging around in the Carrier Dome lie with Morgan. If he can shoot better than 50 percent from beyond the arc, as he has this season, it has the potential to keep Cornell in the game. With Frank Howard back, SU’s defense at the top of the 2-3 zone should be up to the task of keeping Morgan from getting open looks.

Beyond Morgan, SU just has to let its size dominate. Whether Paschal Chukwu is 100 percent or not, the Orange should always have two players on the floor taller or as tall as Jimmy and Warren. When accounting for the size advantage of SU’s guards, too, Syracuse should dominate on the glass and win easily.

Stat to know: 23.6 – Points per game that Cornell leading scorer Matt Morgan averages

KenPom odds: As of Nov. 28, Syracuse has a 98 percent chance to win, by a projected 83-61 score.

Player to watch: Matt Morgan, guard, No. 10

Morgan has scored more than a third of Cornell’s points this season. He can drain 3-point shots from anywhere on the floor, but also finds ways to finish inside even at just 6-foot-2. Morgan attacks the glass and leads Cornell in rebounding, too. His one weak spot, with the ball in his hands so much, is turnovers. Morgan has turned the ball over more than any of his Big Red teammates. Against the length of SU’s zone, he’ll have to both knock down shots and control the ball. Cornell will need him to to have a chance.

Published on November 29, 2018 at 3:58 pm

Contact Billy: wmheyen@syr.edu | @Wheyen3