With each year that passes, Syracuse’s legendary six-overtime win over Connecticut on March 12, 2009 fades further into the memory books.

The iconic images and extra frames blur together, and the players wearing those jerseys have all moved on. An irreplaceable outing now four and a half years old has become the ultimate ESPN Classic snow day viewing.

But the Madison Square Garden mystique isn’t lost on this year’s Orange. It just shined away from Syracuse last season as Khalif Wyatt and a resurgent Temple squad knocked off the then-No. 3 SU on Dec. 22, 2012.

“Playing in the Garden is kind of every basketball player’s dream,” freshman wing B.J. Johnson said. “It’s got a lot of history.”

No. 2 Syracuse (9-0) returns to Madison Square Garden on Sunday to write its next chapter inside the historic arena. The Orange will take on a vastly improved St. John’s (6-2) squad at noon with bragging rights for the title of “New York’s College Team” on the line.

The Red Storm’s rangy defense is a new challenge for Syracuse. If it can overcome that, this renewal of a long-time rivalry offers the Orange a chance to turn the MSG spotlight back on itself.

“It is great to go there. We love playing in New York,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “St. John’s is playing well. I think they have a really good team. I think it will be a great matchup. It will be a great game down there.”

Boeheim said he expects the Red Storm to snap a two-year NCAA Tournament drought this season. With D’Angelo Harrison heading the offense and the fifth-best field-goal percentage defense in the country, St. John’s head coach Steve Lavin said this is the most balanced team he’s had since taking over the program in 2011.

Harrison trails only Doug McDermott among Big East scorers with 18.9 points per game. Chris Obekpa’s 5.5 blocks per game lead the nation by one full rejection. Even point guard Phil Greene IV has just three turnovers in 209 minutes this year.

“I heard they’re hard,” Syracuse forward C.J. Fair said. “We’ve got to be ready for whatever they bring. It will be an exciting game on both ends.”

For Syracuse, the challenge of getting to the rim against Obekpa is a staunch one. The Orange has been living and dying with Fair’s mid-range game and Trevor Cooney’s red-hot outside shooting.

But Obekpa’s interior presence and defensive-minded forward Sir’Dominic Pointer allow the Red Storm to extend its pressure, and could force the Orange to look inside more.

That would mean Jerami Grant in the high post and DaJuan Coleman on the block. With Rakeem Christmas still healing from a right thumb contusion, Coleman logged his second double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds against Binghamton last Saturday.

“His position is better. He is finishing better out there,” Boeheim said. “But we have to get better inside. It is something we continually work on and are trying to improve.”

Regardless of where the Orange funnels its offense into, Syracuse will have a chance to regain the Madison Square Garden spotlight on Sunday.

Said Grant: “It’s a great platform to play on for a basketball team like this, so I definitely want to be ready to go out there and play St. John’s.”

Published on December 14, 2013 at 2:22 pm

Contact Stephen: sebail01@syr.edu | @Stephen_Bailey1