NEWARK, N.J. — Scoop Jardine knows the curveball is coming. It’s not going to stop. In preparation for it, on certain plays, he tests the waters with specific sets and attacks to see what the opposition has transformed into: zone or man-to-man.

A changeup may be a better way to describe it, though, as all season Syracuse’s opponents have changed up their defenses in an attempt to throw the fastbreak-friendly No. 4 Orange off. From play to play. Sometimes, even, in-play.

‘We have seen it all year,’ Jardine said. ‘A lot of teams are playing us zone. And some matchup.’

Through 15 games, the point guard Jardine and SU surfed through early season struggles and adjusted well to the two-faced defenses of Detroit, William & Mary and a bevy of other opponents. But Saturday, Seton Hall threw a little extra, tenacious kink against Syracuse’s offensive attack. It threw Jardine off as he directed SU to a season-low 20 first-half points.

The 20 points left SU head coach Jim Boeheim without answers at the postgame podium in the Prudential Center as to why the Orange’s offensive attack stalled. The rhythm wasn’t there.

‘For whatever reason, we lost our offensive rhythm,’ Boeheim said. ‘We have been playing with great offensive rhythm.’

Jardine, Joseph and Triche said the lack of rhythm stemmed from the back-and-forth from zone to man of Seton Hall. Solemnly sitting with an ice pack on his leg postgame, Joseph said SU has several offensive sets that are affected against the zone. It has the veteran slightly concerned heading into a date with St. John’s matchup-zone Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.

Until then, Joseph, Jardine and Triche are left to think about the plays that affected SU’s sets in Newark Saturday. They were the story of the first half. And the play that ended the half encapsulated it all.

After Boeheim took a timeout with 30 seconds left in the half, SU up two, he schemed an attacking play for Jardine. The original plan consisted of flanking four total SU players — two apiece on the left and right — each duo an arm’s length from the sideline. Then SU would take time off the clock while Jardine, Triche and Dion Waiters passed the ball amongst themselves. At the right time, Jardine would drive the lane, while Joseph and James Southerland cut backdoor, and he would either lob it to one of them or shoot himself.

But that plan was for man-to-man defense.

And the plan ended up falling apart in Triche’s hands as he forced a drive to the basket against the SHU zone. Jardine and Triche both recognized Seton Hall’s switch and tried to communicate to each other, with Jardine motioning for Triche to go inside, Triche said. Triche tried to make a one-on-one play against the Zone, but turned the ball over on a SHU trap in the lane.

It was just one breakdown, but a breakdown which shows the No. 4 team in the nation still has kinks to iron out. Kinks that Big East teams will continue to try and prod out of Jardine and the Orange.

‘On that play,’ Jardine said. ‘They started out, we thought they were going to be in man. And Triche thought they were going to be in man, and just dribble to try and get something going.’

aolivero@syr.edu

Published on January 7, 2011 at 12:00 pm