BIG EAST TOP TWO-GUARDS 2008-2009: 5) ERIC DEVENDORF

November 11, 2008


When Eric Devendorf went down last December with a torn ACL, the March Madness betting odds of the Syracuse Orange took a tremendous hit. Devendorf's season would be over after just 10 games and SU was headed to a second straight NIT appearance.

Devendorf, a junior, was off to a very good start in 2007-2008, averaging 17 points a game and showing signs of becoming a leader for the young Orange. The 6-foot-4 guard, a Michigan native, was showing improvements in his offensive game, hitting nearly 41% from three-point range, and still averaging in the neighborhood of four assists a game.

The outlook for 2008-2009 is a little fuzzy for Devendorf as everyone responds from an injury differently. It has been 11 months since he injured his knee, so it is at full strength, physically, there is always a concern mentally how the player reacts to the injury. That will not be known until Devendorf gets back into the grind that is a 30+ game high-major schedule.

When he is healthy, Devendorf can do a little bit of everything on the offensive end of the court from the two-guard position. He is very impressive at going to the basket, especially to his left, and catches teams by surprise with a hesitation more and contorting his body to maneuver into the paint to score. When he is given room he will knock down the perimeter shot as well, not a pure looking shot, but one that needs to be respected.

For the Orange to return to the NCAA Tournament and move up in the Big East standings, Eric Devendorf will need to return to form this year. If he can, the Orange have a valuable and versatile weapon at the two-guard position.

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BIG EAST FOOTBALL PREVIEW: GAME #9 SYRACUSE

November 7, 2008


As improbable as it sounded just a few short weeks ago, the Rutgers football team is working on playing themselves into bowl contention. With their remaining schedule, having to win at least three of four to get eligible is not an improbable proposition, in fact, I would almost bet on Rutgers to do it.

After a 1-5 start where they did not earn a win against a single 1-A football program, Rutgers has turned the ship around with an ugly 12-10 home win over UConn and a statement road win at Pittsburgh in which they scored 54 points on the Panthers. How remarkable was that outburst? In the previous six games against 1-A opponents, RU averaged a pathetic 13 points a game!

Syracuse also enters the game in a positive move. The Orange matched their conference win total of 2006 and 2007 last week when they upset Louisville in the Carrier Dome, 28-21, earning their first Big East win of 2008. It was also their first win against a 1-A club this year.

The latest college football odds indicate Rutgers as a 14 1/2 point favorite. Pittsburgh-explosion aside, that is a lot of points for a team that has tremendous trouble scoring. Syracuse has been playing a little better under Greg Robinson lately and they should be able to keep the game from getting out of control. Both teams will look to run the ball, so this should be a rather low scoring affair.

Prediction:

Rutgers 21
Syracuse 13

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BIG EAST TOP POINT GUARDS 2008-2009: #2 JONNY FLYNN

November 5, 2008

Over the last few years, we have seen some impressive freshman performances from point guards in the Big East. Dominic James of Marquette took the conference by storm in the Golden Eagles' Big East debut campaign, Eugene Harvey seemed to be on the track to stardom after a frosh campaign had him scoring at a high clip at Seton Hall. Going back a little more, Chris Thomas looked like a star and a future NBA Draft pick in the early lottery selections.

Last year, Syracuse frosh Jonny Flynn put together an offensive showing as a point guard that rivaled any of theirs. The next question to be answered, will Flynn take that next step and become a complete point guard, making those around him better and therefore, bringing his team along for a ride in the postseason.

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Flynn, a native of Niagara Falls, made his presence felt immediately once donning an Orange uniform. In his collegiate debut, Flynn poured in 28 points and added 9 assists in a win over Siena (an NCAA tournament team). The very next night, he solidified his case as a future Orange legend by connecting on his lone field goal of the game in the waning seconds to beat St. Joseph's (another NCAA tourney club). What a two-night debut.

Like any frosh, Flynn had some early ups and downs, but when backcourt mate Eric Devendorf was lost for the season in mid-December, Flynn's role changed from point guard to iron man. In Big East play, Flynn averaged over 39 minutes a game as the lone ball-handler and perimeter scoring threat of the Orange. In the last 13 Big East contests (including the conference tournament), Flynn played in 523 of a possible 525 minutes, averaging 40.2 minutes a game (one went to overtime).

His Big East production was impressive, averaging 16.7 points a game and 4.9 assists. Flynn shot a very respectable 46% from the field and 36% from the three-point arc. What also can not be ignored is Flynn's tremendous athleticism that has seen the 6-foot guard play above the rim for impressive dunks that will open many eyes as the rest of the nation gets more of an introduction to this rising star.

The main question you will hear about Flynn is his ability to run a team efficiently. One thing that seems to be overlooked, despite seeing constant pressure as the lone ball-handler on the court much of the season and logging a tremendous amount of minutes, Flynn had an assist to turnover ratio of 2:1 on the season, turning it over just 2.7 times a game. Pretty impressive for all that he was asked to do last season.

This season, help returns to the perimeter of the Orange attack with Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins sharing in the perimeter obligations for SU. The added help should take the pressure of Flynn and we should see a point guard begin to blossom with his all-around game. Flynn is also an excellent defender, especially in a man-to0man scheme, something that was masked by the SU zone last season. With a deeper club this year, expect to see Flynn's defensive abilities unleashed a little more as well.

The expectation for college basketball betting when it comes to March Madness is the need to have a dominant point guard. The staff at the NBE Basketball Report feels Syracuse has that aspect covered well with our #2 point guard for 2008-2009, Jonny Flynn.

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