The sixth-ranked Syracuse Orange battle the UConn Huskies in Wednesday's premier Big East Basketball game at 7 pm on ESPN.
The Syracuse Orange radio broadcast is here. The UConn Huskies live stream is here (subscription required).
The Orange have won two in a row since dropping two of the three contests it has all season in consecutive games. Syracuse is undefeated with four wins against ranked teams, including an upset of then-#1 Louisville 70-68 in Kentucky. The Orange has the best Big East record at 8-2. UConn is the highest team in the Big East that is not nationally ranked, sitting in seventh place in the conference.
Syracuse is led by Brandon Triche in points per game (14.6). C.J. Fair's 7.2 rebounds per game is tops on the team, while Michael Carter-Williams averages 8.5 assists per contest. Rakeem Christmas has the best shooting percentage among players averaging more than 4 points per game (.573), while Fair is the most efficient three-point shooter (.433 percentage).
On Sunday afternoon, Syracuse dismantled St. John's 77-58 at the Carrier Dome in Upstate New York. The Orange shot at least ten percent better in all three categories and also had more assists, steals and blocks. Fair had 17 points and nine rebounds. Carter-Williams had 17 points and eight assists, plus six of the team's 11 steals.
Connecticut had its last defeat against St. John's just two games ago but has won four of the last five games, including consecutive games in overtime. UConn won at Providence College 82-79 in OT on January 31 and won a 69-64 contest versus USF on February 3.
Shabazz Napier is the team's leading scorer with 17.2 points per game. DeAndre Daniels leads the way in rebounds with 4.8 and Ryan Boatright collects 4.4 assists per game, best on the team. Napier and Daniels each have .450 shooting percentages to lead scorers with at least five points per game, and Napier (.397) has the best three-point shot.
In the 78-67 win over Seton Hall on Sunday, Napier had 22 points, nine assists, six steals and four rebounds. Boatright added 20 points and four steals of his own. The Huskies made 91.3 percent of their free throws and also outshot the Pirates from the floor, knocking down 54.2 percent of their shots.
Syracuse swept the three match-ups last season between the teams, including in the Big East Conference Tournament. The #2 Orange topped the Huskies 85-67 on February 11, 2012 in Syracuse, added a 71-69 win two weeks later and won by three points (58-55) at Madison Square Garden on March 8.
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