SYRACUSE, N.Y. — No. 1 Syracuse (18-0, 5-0) and Providence (12-6, 1-4) will meet for the second time in 10 days when they meet in the Carrier Dome on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 6 p.m.  The Orange is going for its 19th consecutive victory, which would equal the best start in school history.

Tickets for Saturday’s game are available online, by phone (1-888-DOMETIX) or in person at the Carrier Dome Box Office. The game will be broadcast live on the BIG EAST Network, Time Warner Sports Cable, SNY and ESPN3. Fans can also follow the action on the Syracuse IMG Radio Network and its flagship TK99 (99.5 FM). The audio stream of the broadcast will be available on Orange All Access on SUathletics.com. Subscriptions to Orange All Access are available at daily, monthly and yearly rates.

GOING FOR NUMBER 19
Syracuse goes for its 19th consecutive victory to open the season when it takes on Providence. The Orange has opened the season with 19 straight wins only once in its long and storied history. The 1999-2000 squad started the season 19-0 on its way to a 26-6 record. That team, which was led by a senior class of Jason Hart, Etan Thomas and Ryan Blackwell, advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 before losing to eventual national champion Michigan State in Auburn Hills.

ORANGE IN THE NCAA STATISTICS
Syracuse leads the nation in three categories in the latest NCAA statistics. The Orange is tied for first in winning percentage with Baylor and Murray State. SU also is ranked first in steals per game (10.9) and turnover margin (7.4). In addition, Syracuse is third in blocked shots per game (7.4) and fifth in assist/turnover ratio (1.52) and scoring margin (20.5). Individually, sophomore Fab Melo ranks 14th in blocked shots (2.9 per game).

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE ORANGE
The Orange remained undefeated with a 79-66 victory at Villanova on Wednesday, Jan. 11 to start the season 18-0 for the second consecutive year.

The game opened with three ties and six lead changes before Syracuse took control with a 20-2 run during a span of seven minutes. With the score tied, 14-14, junior James Southerland’s jumper gave SU the lead for good. Seven different players scored for the Orange during the run. A Villanova turnover with 1.3 second remaining gave Syracuse one last possession, and senior Scoop Jardine took advantage of it, banking in a half-court three-pointer to give the Orange its largest lead of the half at 43-24.

Syracuse extended its lead to 22 to open the second half before Villanova went on a 15-4 scoring spurt to cut SU’s advantage to 52-41. The Orange responded with a 10-0 scoring run, highlighted by a dunk by sophomore Dion Waiters, to stretch the lead to 20 and put the game out of reach.

Waiters led the Orange with 20 points, while Southerland added 13 points. Sophomore Baye Keita pulled down a season-high seven rebounds to lead the Orange on the boards.

SCOUTING THE FRIARS
Providence is 12-6 this season and 1-4 in BIG EAST play. The Friars posted its first league win with a 90-59 victory against No. 14/15 Louisville on Tuesday, which snapped a four-game losing streak.

Four of the Friars’ five starters are averaging double figures in scoring. Junior Vincent Council leads the way with 16.4 points per game. He also leads the squad with 127 assists. Gerard Coleman and Bryce Cotton are averaging 15.1 and 14.6 points per game, respectively. In addition, LaDontae Henton is contributing 12.7 points and at team-high 8.9 rebounds per contest.

Ed Cooley is in his first season at the helm of the Providence program. He was named the 15th head coach in the history of the program on March 22, 2011. Previously, Cooley served as head coach at Fairfield for the past five seasons. He also spent nine seasons as an assistant coach at Boston College.

THE SERIES
Syracuse leads the all-time series with Providence, 45-10. The Orange defeated the Friars, 87-73, on Jan. 4 in Providence. Six players scored in double figures for SU, led by junior Brandon Triche’s 16 points.

UP NEXT…
The Orange hosts BIG EAST rival Pittsburgh on Monday, Jan. 16 at 7:30 p.m. as part of ESPN’s Big Monday. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. Tickets for Monday’s game are available online, by phone (1-888-DOMETIX) or in person at the Carrier Dome Box Office.

Article source: http://suathletics.syr.edu/news/2012/1/13/MBB_0113125259.aspx

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