Henry Sims appeared to be in perfect position under the basket. With Syracuse center Fab Melo sealed on his back, the Georgetown center caught a bounce pass and turned to finish at the rim.

But what seemed like an easy layup quickly turned into a disaster for Sims.

Melo stuffed the shot as he had multiple times earlier in the second half. Sims grabbed the rebound, but his second effort rolled off the front of the rim. And after SU started the other way, Melo wagged his right index finger back and forth, signaling to the Hoyas to stop coming into the paint.

‘I mean, they try to make layups and dunk, but I was getting blocks,’ the sophomore center said. ‘I just felt like saying, ‘No. You’re not going to go in there and get dunks over me.”

Melo turned in a dominant defensive performance with six blocks in the second half and overtime in No. 2 Syracuse’s win over Georgetown on Wednesday. That has become typical for the 7-foot Brazilian throughout the Big East schedule as teams continue to attack the middle of SU’s 2-3 zone.

The Syracuse center may have his toughest test of the season Saturday at 1 p.m. when the Orange (24-1, 11-1 Big East) takes on Connecticut (15-8, 5-6 Big East) in the Carrier Dome. The Huskies boast two prominent big men of their own in junior Alex Oriakhi and freshman Andre Drummond. But if Melo plays like he has throughout Big East play, he should be able to match UConn’s post players down low.

The sophomore has become a standout defender at the heart of the Orange defense after shedding 30 pounds and getting into shape during the offseason. But he also credits last year’s Big East Defensive Player of the Year and former SU star Rick Jackson with showing him how to play the center position.

‘That’s how I learned to play this year,’ Melo said. ‘I watched his films in the beginning of the season. … He’s great at getting position. He knows where he has to be in the zone.’

The turnaround for Melo from last year has been well documented. He came to SU as the fourth-best center in his class according to Scout.com, but he was a major disappointment and averaged just 10 minutes per game.

But during the offseason, Melo made a commitment to improve. He is visibly in better shape, helping him become more active in the Syracuse zone. And the extra film study has also paid off.

Assistant coach Mike Hopkins suggested he study Jackson’s defensive positioning from last year, and Melo ran with the idea. He brought game tapes to China, where he played for Brazil in the World University Games, and spent much of his down time studying Jackson’s work on defense.

And after the win over Georgetown on Wednesday, head coach Jim Boeheim said Melo has even surpassed Jackson in one key defensive category.

‘I’d say (Melo is) just a little bit better shot blocker,’ Boeheim said. ‘Not as good a rebounder, but a much better shot blocker.’

Melo set the Syracuse single-game record with 10 blocks against Seton Hall on Dec. 28 and leads the Big East with 4.1 blocks per conference game.

But when he isn’t swatting shots, Melo has consistently drawn charges throughout the year and avoided foul trouble thanks to his improved agility and better positioning.

‘He blocks shots, he changes shots, he’s just doing everything on the defensive end,’ senior Kris Joseph said. ‘That’s probably going to get him a Big East Defensive Player of the Year (award). He could get most improved player, too, in the Big East. He’s just been playing tremendous for us.’

If opponents continue challenging Melo inside, those awards seem within reach. He averages more blocks per game than Jackson did last year, and when he missed three games due to academic issues this season, SU’s other big men couldn’t replace his presence in the middle of the zone.

A dominant performance by Melo against the UConn frontcourt Saturday could be another step toward securing those postseason accolades.

He said he won’t have a message for Oriakhi and Drummond until after the game, but if the sophomore comes up with another big performance, that message will likely be something similar to the finger wag he gave Georgetown on Wednesday.

‘I go to a game and I want to score,’ Melo said. ‘I expect to get more rebounds, more blocked shots. That’s what I do.’

zjbrown@syr.edu

Published on February 9, 2012 at 12:00 pm