By Dave Cooperman

It seemed like the wait for Vermont was forever (and worth it), and now Syracuse will turn around in a blink of an eye and shortly after your morning coffee tip off against Gonzaga at 12:10pm.

I can’t profess to know a whole lot about this Gonzaga basketball team.  I watched them a few times in their made for TV games in November and I had an eye on them last night while getting properly buzzed for the Vermont beating.  They only lost 6 times all season, a number that stands up in any conference.  They seem athletic, maybe more so than Gonzaga teams of the past few years, and they have a 7’0 center named Robert Sacre who might cause problems with AO likely to miss another game.

Sparing you from over analysis I offer 3 intangibles that skew heavily to the Orange.

The “Home” Crowd

If you thought Buffalo was pro ‘Cuse on Friday, wait until Sunday when people won’t have to deal with hotel rooms and getting out of work early.  Facing a team from the Pacific Northwest whose fans aren’t traveling cross country helps the situation.

The 2-3 Turnaround Time

This second round is a tricky spot for a team facing the 2-3 zone for the first time all season.  They have one day to teach, learn and gameplan and there is no way any team can be fully prepared.  Last year I remember having concerns facing James Harden and Arizona St. and the zone baffled him and his last college game was a dud.  When a team has 3 or 4 days plus rest is when you can get concerned.

Breakfast with Boeheim

Last I checked Gonzaga plays in the Western time zone.  I know they have been in town for a few days but you can not tell me there clocks aren’t a little screwed up.  The NFL has started to examine west coast teams that have to play on the east coast at 1:00 and the numbers have proven to be a distinct disadvantage for the traveling teams.  I think the same applies here.