Melo is Fab

Just three minutes and 44 seconds into the Jan. 15 game against Cincinnati, Syracuse University center Fabricio de Melo was whistled for his third foul. It was his 33rd foul of the season, which at that point was only two less than the points he had scored (35), and just one more than the rebounds he had grabbed (32). So it’s safe to say that the start of the Melo Era at SU was far more drab than Fab.

But a few things happened the rest of the half and during halftime that may have jumpstarted the 7-foot Melo’s collegiate career—one that many recruiting experts predicted would end with a one-and-done exit to the NBA.

First, the Bearcats whittled SU’s 18-3 lead to 35-31 at the half. And SU star Kris Joseph was not going to return to the game after falling and hitting his head on the floor with about 6½ minutes left in the first half. (Joseph did not travel with the Orange to Pittsburgh for Monday’s game and is being evaluated on a daily basis, according Pete Moore, SU’s director of Athletic Communications.)

So the Orange needed Melo to do much more than his usual five-minute, two-foul cameo in the second half against the Bearcats. At halftime, SU senior forward Rick Jackson told Melo to settle down and let his 244pound body play defense. Melo, Jackson said, has a tendency to get too excited and reach with his hands, resulting in many of his fouls. And Orange coach Jim Boeheim implored Melo to “get big” on the court and start intimidating the opposition. “He told me guys were going to be scared of me,” Melo said.

Melo followed orders and played his best stretch of the season. He played the first 11:13 of the half—by far the most consecutive minutes he has been on the floor this season—and scored six points with three rebounds, four blocks and no fouls. The No. 5 Orange (18-0 before the Monday, Jan. 17, game opposite Pitt) outscored No. 25 Cincinnati 20-6 during that stretch and cruised to a 67-52 win before 24,338 at the Carrier Dome, the largest crowd for a college basketball game this season.

“Fab turned the start of the second half around,” Boeheim said. “He got in there and made a couple of big blocks, Ricky {Jackson} found him for a dunk, and he made a real nice jumper. This was a real good {game} for him.”

The dunk ended a fast break that Melo started with a block against 6-11 Ibrahima Thomas. He also had a rebound basket as SU went on a 16-0 run to start the second half. Melo then followed back-to-back blocks with a mid-range jumper that he banked off the glass to push SU’s lead to 53-35.

SU fans finally saw why Melo was a fivestar recruit and why Big East Conference coaches voted him as Preseason Rookie of the Year. “He’s been working so hard trying to get to where he can be, a great player,” Jackson said. “And I think he’s coming along.”

In basketball terms, Melo is still a baby.

He grew up in Brazil, where he played soccer until he grew to 6-8 in ninth grade. A few years ago he moved to Weston, Fla., and lived with a host family so he could attend The Sagemont School, a private institution of 350 students outside of Fort Lauderdale.

Melo, who will turn 21 in June, played for Sagemont last season, his high school senior year. But the team played in Florida’s Class

2A, the second smallest of the state’s six levels, and his lack of experience against toplevel competition caught up to him at the start of this season. Melo’s footwork and positioning on defense needed work, so he found himself in constant foul trouble. Then he suffered a tear in his calf muscle, which still troubles him, and the injury hindered his conditioning.

Boeheim said there was no indication that Melo would play so well in the second half against Cincinnati. “We’ve been looking,” Boeheim said after the game. “We saw him today.”

Melo said he has been spending extra time working on all aspects of his game with assistant coach Bernie Fine, who tutors SU’s big men. The Orange doesn’t need a lot of points from Melo, but he can make a huge impact on defense because he clogs up the middle of SU’s 2-3 zone and he alters shots with his shot-blocking acumen.

“I talk to Coach Boeheim a lot, and he told me what he wants me to do: block shots and get rebounds,” Melo said. “I’m not worried about scoring points. I know it will come later, but I want to be good at blocking shots and getting rebounds.”

Against Cincinnati, the Orange outscored the Bearcats 29-9 with Melo in the game and SU was outscored 43-38 when he was on the bench. When Melo left the game in the second half with SU leading 55-37, he received a standing ovation.

The affable Melo almost always has a smile on his face, but this time his ear-to-ear grin lit up the Carrier Dome. “It feels good; I’ve been struggling lately,” Melo admitted after the game. “But today I felt confident. I was playing defense and making plays.”

Melo’s teammates noticed his performance and his smile. “Exactly what we needed. I love to see him play well,” guard Brandon Triche said. “Once he started playing well, it even made me smile. It’s a thing we all thought that he would be doing every game. This is just a sample of what he can do.”

—Matt Michael

Breakout game: Fab Melo hit his stride against Cincinnati.

Trophy life: At the Jan. 15 basketball contest, Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner presided over a halftime celebration of Syracuse University’s football victory over Kansas State in the Pinstripe Bowl. It included accepting the plunder won in a wager with Bruce Snead, the mayor of Manhattan, Kan., and coach Doug Marrone showing off his prize, a spiffy new trophy.