Notent Notables: Syracuse 81, Rutgers 65

I hope this post isn't TOO Sports Guy-ish. I'm about 600 pages into his Book of Basketball. The good news: I haven't overdosed. I still want more.

• Bob Wenzel (hearts) Mookie Jones. How interesting! How bizarre!

• Anyone else get the feeling Boeheim is messing with us? Mookie gets KJ minutes? Rick gets Mookie minutes? It's like he realized five minutes into the game Rutgers couldn't win, so he decided to work on Mookie's ego. Even when Rutgers made the run, KJ and Rick stayed on the bench. A few days ago those guys were our hottest players! Jim might be entering the "I am Keith Hernandez" portion of his career.

• OK, last note on Mookie. I promise. It's clear by now he's got a great 3-point shot; either the best or the second best on the team, depending on how much you love Rautins. So far, it's been unclear whether he could do anything else. We still don't know if he's going to be an effective defender in SU's zone. Tonight he was playing as a forward instead of a guard, which hid some of the flailing uncertainties he shows when he's up top. More importantly, it required him to crash the boards, which he did WITH ALACRITY (apologies to Bill Raferty). I was mildly impressed. He looked a little small out there, especially since his neck is 1-3 inches shorter than a normal human, but he got after it, finishing with 4 rebounds. He was frequently in good rebounding position even when the ball didn't bounce his way. Anyway, the Mookie Jones saga continues to unfold.
  

• How good is Boeheim getting at juggling the PGs? They didn't spend a minute on the floor at the same time tonight. They combined for 24 points and 8 assists. They also had 7 total turnovers, but Boeheim yanked them whenever they were imploding. Triche hit two big threes, and Scoop got SU some high percentage looks to hold off the Rutgers run in the second half.
  

• Did you notice this? Andy Rautins: 23 pts, 9 ast, 8 reb, 5 stl. Sweet sassy molassy!
  

• Wes Johnson wasn't really needed in this one, but... I mean... can he create his own shot? It's unclear, right? Until now, we thought he needed to work on his killer instinct, that he was too unselfish. SU's offense this year does not center on Wes Johnson. It centers on passing. Everybody creates for everybody else. Wes is the best finisher on the team, and has an NBA-ready jump shot that he makes routinely from anywhere on the court. Still, he hasn't routinely taken over games on offense. I'm beginning to suspect that just isn't part of his game. Looking ahead to the draft, I see Wes as a low-risk, low-reward pick. At the very least, he's a key role player. But his absolute ceiling is 3rd best player for a contender, 2nd best player for weaker teams. If you're an NBA team drafting in the top 5, and you want to pick a guy who might be an All-Star some day... don't pick Wes. (It's lonely on the Wes Johnson reality-check bandwagon here in Syracuse.)
  

• If you follow me on Twitter at pa451, you'll have seen my note about Rutgers using the patented Bob Huggins, "Oh crap! I forgot SU plays a 2-3 zone!" Offense. (Copyright 2009) They looked HORRENDOUS on offense. 14 assists to 21 turnovers. 38.5% shooting. You have to have a frontcourt offense to beat SU this year. You just have to.

• Up next... hey! It's Bob Huggins! I wonder if he scouted the Orange this year? Last year West Virginia lost a snoozer 74-61 in the dome. This year SU should win again. Of course, all bets are off in conference. Three forwards lead West Virginia in scoring, which could be trouble except for... well... Bob Huggins's brain. They're not tall, either. Whatever happens Saturday, there is no doubt in my mind SU is the better team. Orange win, 76-72.

P.S. Mookie's apartment was robbed while he was in NJ. Poor Mookie! Also, I think "# of children" should be listed along with all the other details on ESPN's team roster pages. It would be extremely helpful.