Preview: Cornell at Syracuse
Few teams have as difficult an act to follow as Syracuse, which is coming off its fourth Final Four appearance under Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim. The Orange will also be making its debut in the Atlantic Coast Conference after being a member of the Big East since that league's inception in 1979. And if that weren't enough, No. 7 Syracuse has to replace its starting guards and three of its top four scorers entering Friday's season opener against visiting Cornell.
The Orange, who were picked to finish second behind Duke in the conference's preseason poll, return their starting frontcourt intact so Boeheim is more focused on his backcourt than the shift to a new league. "That's a big area we've been working on. We have to really bring the backcourt along," Boeheim said. Cornell, picked to finish sixth in the Ivy League preseason poll, lost four starters and is without injured leading scorer Shonn Miller.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, ACC Network
ABOUT CORNELL (2012-13: 13-18, 5-9 Ivy League): Miller is battling a recurring shoulder injury that forced him to miss the final four games last season and there are doubts whether he will return this season. Sophomore Nolan Cressler averaged 9.3 points off the bench while making a team-high 54 from 3-point ranger and shooting 40.3 percent from beyond the arc. He will be joined in the backcourt by junior Devin Cherry, who averaged 6.2 points and scored in double figures seven times last season, but the absence of Miller will hurt an inexperienced front line.
ABOUT SYRACUSE (30-10, 11-7 Big East): Boeheim's frontcourt is anchored by forward C.J. Fair, who led the team in scoring (14.5 points) and rebounding (7.0) and was named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year. He'll be joined up front by DaJuan Coleman and Rakeem Christmas - with Jerami Grant and Baye Moussa Keita backing them up - but the player on the spot will be point guard Tyler Ennis, considered one of the top freshmen in the nation. "He's a smart player," Boeheim said. "He understands the game, and I think he'll be fine stepping into the role."
TIP-INS
1. Syracuse has won 33 consecutive meetings with Cornell.
2. Miller was one of two players to finish among the top 100 nationally in defensive rebounding, blocks rate and steal percentage. The other, Kentucky's Nerlens Noel, was the No. 6 pick in the NBA draft.
3. Boeheim has 920 career wins, second all time to Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (957).
PREDICTION: Syracuse 82, Cornell 56
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