Syracuse (6-3) faces Georgetown (6-4) in the newest chapter of an old rivalry on Saturday at noon in the Carrier Dome. SU is coming off a win over Boston University while Georgetown has won four straight.

At halftime, SU will honor Orange basketball legend Pearl Washington, who died on April 20 while battling a malignant brain tumor.

Connor Grossman (6-3)
Pearly afternoon
Syracuse 73, Georgetown 65

Regardless of how much longer the Orange and Georgetown can maintain a healthy rivalry, everyone in the Carrier Dome will be fully submerged in nostalgia. SU is honoring the life and career of Pearl Washington with a halftime ceremony that will surely deflect attention away from Syracuse’s lackluster start to the season. The Hoyas enter the contest having won four straight and will wear down SU’s interior defense. Expect Dajuan Coleman to get plenty more minutes than the nine he played against Boston University last weekend, and he’ll help the Orange on both sides of the ball as it skirts past Georgetown.

Matt Schneidman (7-2)
For Pearl
Syracuse 69, Georgetown 56

If anything else, the Orange is playing this one for arguably its most influential player ever. Add on the fact that it’s an old rival, regardless of how alive this rivalry is, and Saturday should be special in the Carrier Dome. Expect Syracuse’s depth to lead it in this one, with Andrew White being his normal self and a host of others chiming in. Rodney Pryor will put up points for Georgetown, but it’s not nearly enough as SU grabs a much-needed nonconference win.

Paul Schwedelson (7-2)
Big East Brawl
Syracuse 64, Georgetown 61

Syracuse has played three major-conference opponents and lost to all three. The only team SU has beaten in Joe Lunardi’s most recent NCAA Tournament projections is Monmouth, predicted to be a No. 13 seed. The Tournament is a long way off but the quality of opponents the Orange has beaten up on is telling. GU’s Rodney Pryor is hitting 52.5 percent from 3 and while it seemed like a fluke when Boston University’s Cedric Hankerson hit 10-of-20, that performance exposed Syracuse’s perimeter defense. Pryor averages 20.6 points per game and is the player the Orange has to stop. In a contest between two former Big East foes, expect another nail-biter between two middling teams.

Published on December 16, 2016 at 10:32 am