ST. LOUIS – Syracuse hasn’t seen anything like it during a game this year. Pieced together and against different opponents, yes, but the array of defenses Middle Tennessee State may throw at the Orange isn’t something SU has been exposed to in any one of its 33 games.

Against second-seeded Michigan State on Friday, No. 15 seed MTSU flashed a 1-3-1, 2-3 zone, man-to-man defense and full-court press in arguably the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history.

Syracuse’s main ball-handlers are two players primarily playing point guard for the first time in their college careers. Michael Gbinije and Frank Howard, along with the rest of the 10th-seeded Orange (23-10, 9-9 Atlantic Coast), will face a unique defensive diversity against the Blue Raiders (25-9, 13-5 Conference USA) with a spot in the Sweet Sixteen on the line Sunday evening at the Scottrade Center.

“They played a couple of different combination zones and very good man-to-man,” SU head coach Jim Boeheim said. “They switch a lot. They hedge. They do different things in their defense.”

In the first half against Dayton, the Orange committed 11 turnovers. After the game, Boeheim said that had to change in the second half for the Orange to have a chance. It did, and SU only turned the ball over four times as it pulled away against the Flyers on Friday in the Round of 64.

Against the Spartans, Middle Tennessee forced 14 turnovers (six of which were committed by National Player of the Year contender Denzel Valentine) and only committed 10 itself. That may not bode well for a Syracuse team that’s turned the ball over 13 or more times in each of its last five games.

“Just be careful with the ball and be aware of all the defenses,” Malachi Richardson said. “Most teams only played man or they might switch into a zone or a press for a few plays…this is the first time for us I think a team will play so many different defenses at so many different times.”

Syracuse stumbled across half court several times as Dayton implemented a full-court press down 20-plus points on Friday. Once, the Flyers knocked the ball out of bounds and Syracuse had to throw the ball inbound again. Another time, Gbinije streaked down the right side of the court and caught a lob from Trevor Cooney that seamlessly broke the press. Gbinije then lobbed the ball up to a soaring Tyler Roberson, who flushed a two-handed dunk to add an exclamation point to a game already decided.

The defenses Syracuse has seen in pieces include the following, as listed by Gbinije on Saturday: Duke’s combination of man-to-man and 2-3 zone, a 1-3-1 from an opponent he couldn’t remember (Tyler Lydon noted Louisville played a 1-3-1 against the Orange) and a matchup zone from Miami.

“We’ve seen every one they’ve played in different spurts,” assistant coach Gerry McNamara said. “We’ve seen teams that have switched, we’ve seen teams that have hard-hedged, we’ve teams that have played 1-3-1, so I think the biggest thing for us is to be prepared for everything.”

And after the Blue Raiders shocked the college basketball world just two days ago, it’s a fitting way to describe what Syracuse has to do to avoid letting that happen again.

Published on March 19, 2016 at 11:39 pm

Contact Matt: mcschnei@syr.edu | @matt_schneidman