BOSTON – The zone defense is a distant concept to those who don’t play it. Opponents preparing to play the Syracuse 2-3 zone tend to chuckle when asked about it.

Teams like Wisconsin and Ohio State do not entertain the thought of playing zone. It works for Syracuse, but not for them.

Ohio State superstar Jared Sullinger, for instance, cannot comprehend defending an area, rather than a player.

‘I know you guard an area but sometimes I kind of get into man concept and all of a sudden you see me flying at a pick and roll or something,’ he said. ‘I’m thinking to myself, like, ‘Wasn’t I supposed to be in the middle of this 2-3 zone?’ So I really don’t know how to play it.’

Sullinger does not play zone, but his skill set matches up well against the Syracuse defense. The Orange, making its first Elite Eight appearance since 2003, faces a difficult challenge guarding the frontcourt tandem of Sullinger and Deshaun Thomas. Sullinger, the Buckeyes’ star forward, averages 17.6 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. Thomas, a versatile forward, is averaging 20.7 points over his last 11 games.

Wisconsin utilized its outside shooting to keep pace with Syracuse (34-2) in the Sweet 16, but the Orange now has to turn its attention to limiting the Buckeyes’ (30-7) inside scoring when the Nos. 1 and 2 seeds in the East Region square off on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. at the TD Garden. A spot in next week’s Final Four in New Orleans is on the line.

In order for Syracuse to get there for the first time in nine years, it must defeat what may be its toughest opponent of the season.

‘I think they’re the best team I’ve seen all year long in terms of total makeup and what they do,’ head coach Jim Boeheim said.

The dominant inside players for Ohio State are even tougher to defend because of the Buckeyes’ ability to score on the perimeter. Thomas is a supreme all-around playmaker who can make a shot from anywhere on the court. OSU has a quality point guard in Aaron Craft and another gifted outside shooter in William Buford.

Thus, Ohio State has the talent to move the ball around and make plays. Thomas said his goal is to be all over the court in an effort to confuse the SU big men.

‘We just need to play our role, stretch them out, and getting in the open seams and just knocking down shots,’ Thomas said. ‘We’re going to stretch their bigs out there.’

In his press conference on Friday, Boeheim was asked multiple questions about his dedication and persistence in using the zone. Time and time again, after games such as the Sweet 16 matchup with Wisconsin – when the Badgers made 14 3s – the strategy of playing zone is questioned.

Saturday’s game with the preseason No. 3 team in the nation presented the issue of how Syracuse could contain Sullinger and Thomas moving around. The Orange will be tested by how well it closes on the soft spots in its zone.

‘We just got to make them uncomfortable,’ C.J. Fair said. ‘We can’t let Sullinger get deep position with a clear pass. So we just got to do a good job denying him and then locating their shooters like Buford and Thomas.’

Sullinger is not an uber-athletic big man, but he can score inside, has a mid-range jump shot and is a quality rebounder. Sullinger and Thomas are Nos. 1 and 2 in the Big Ten in offensive rebounds, giving them a leg up in one of Syracuse’s weakest parts of the game.

And Sullinger’s best attribute might be his deft passing ability. The 6-foot-9, 280-pound sophomore is able to break out of double teams and sticky situations by finding the right teammate at the right time.

James Southerland said Syracuse has played a couple teams with big men who were solid passers. Southerland said the key to containing Sullinger will be forcing him to take shots over taller defenders, which is one element he tends to struggle with.

‘He gets it in his hands, bad things happen for opposing defenses,’ SU assistant coach Mike Hopkins said. ‘So we got to do a good job to limit his touches and when he gets it, be able to play it as good and physical as we can.’

Both Sullinger and Thomas are capable of scoring 25-plus points on any given night. Immense pressure will be on Rakeem Christmas, Baye Keita and the Syracuse forwards to limit their opportunities and deny easy buckets.

‘We know it’s a very daunting task to play them,’ Boeheim said. ‘You know, we’ve prepared for it. We’re ready to play them. I hope it’ll be a great game.’

mcooperj@syr.edu

Published on March 23, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Mark: mcooperj@syr.edu | @mark_cooperjr