Oh, man.  Here we go again.  Georgetown versus Syracuse.  Hoyas versus Orange.  Good versus Evil.  Man versus Food.  The curtain to Act III of the biggest and best rivalry in the Big East rises at noon, but first here's another installment of our feature that brings you inside the ropes, outside the lines, and behind enemy territory to get you all the info you need to know about the Syracuse Orange.  Special thanks to Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician, our biggest rival for Big East blog supremacy, for valiantly stepping up to the plate and answering our penetrating questions.  Be sure to check THIS for our answers to some of theirs.  Troy Nunes, this Coors Light is for you. 

In prison they make you wear Syracuse garb.

CH: Syracuse had 34,000 strong for the big game against Villanova last month. I'll admit it looked pretty casual on TV and it was nice that you had Erin Andrews parading around the Carrier Dome, but why not just move the damn court to the middle of the Dome so that 50,000 fans could have attended? It's not like there's anything better to do in Cuse on a Saturday night!

It's a valid point. We've wondered for a while now why they don't give it a shot. Based on the initial feedback from the Nova game it sounds like it's something SU will attempt in the near future. The only person who seems to be against it is Jim Boeheim...and if anyone has the pull to put the kibosh on things...it's Jimmy. So we'll see. If not for Syracuse games, I think you'll start to see the move made for when the Dome hosts NCAA Regionals in the future. That's the way things are going in general.

What's it like to be ranked #1 and then blow it by losing to Louisville for the 2nd time in 3 weeks?

It was a bummer. It was awesome to be No. 1 and finally get that validation. By losing right away, it sends out the signal that we aren't quite ready for that kind of rep. True or not. Not to mention the fact that it's official...we can't beat Louisville. We hate you guys but at least we can beat you when the time calls for it. With Louisville, they've got some kind of kryptonite that we can't seem to get around. Maybe it's Pitino, maybe it's their three-point shooting, maybe it's their affinity for random bench players having career games against us...maybe it's all three. It's something all Syracuse fans are miffed about. Yeah, I said miffed.

More fun with Troy Nunes after The Jump:

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A weird and scary week for the Hoyas that started with the game against Notre Dame will come to an end with the regular season finale againat the Bearcats of Cincinnati.  As usual we here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON are taking you inside the ropes, outside the lines, and behind enemy territory to bring you everything you need to know ahead of tomorrow's clash.  Special thanks to The Bearcats Blog for providing the answers to our penetrating questions.  This Coors Light is for you.  Before you dive into the Q&A, please click the below to get a taste of the beautiful city of Cincinnati, Ohio.  Enjoy.

CH:  Lance Stephenson came equipped with the BORN READY nickname. After a year of watching him play, what would you call him?

I would call him PLAYS ERRATIC. He has all the talent, but he hasn't figured out how to put it all together every night. He'll put up 20 one game, and you'll think "Here we go, the light came on." And then he'll score 6 points the next game and you'll wonder if he even suited up. The Louisville game was the best example, as he scored the first 12, then put up 0 the rest of the game.

The Xavier-Cincy showdown has become one of the top rivalries in college athletics (and certainly in hoops), with nastiness even spilling into the stands. What’s the worst thing about Xavier?

I'll skip the fans are [male reproductive organs] who think Xavier's program is holier than thou because they are a Jesuit school and UC players got in trouble. Back in like '94, when Gillen was the coach, the game was really heated. Dontonio Wingfield flipped off the student section during intros, and the players and coaches cussed at each other all game. Near the end, Xavier coaches allegedly grabbed their crotches at a timeout. Bob Huggins famously didn't shake Gillen's hand, and Gillen acted like a [female dog] about it. I hated Gillen before that, but it only made my hate increase. Gillen left Xavier, like all their coaches do, but has since started doing commentary. He is the [bloody] worst, and every time I hear his nasally voice I think back to how much of a [butthead] he is, and blame Xavier for hiring him, making it possible for my hate.

More fun with The Bearcats Blog after The Jump: 

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As much as we here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON hate that Notre Dame is in the Big East, we nonetheless have to act professionally, do our jobs, and treat Notre Dame's head coach with the dignity and respect he deserves.  Today we're bringing you everything you need to know about the Fighting Irish ahead of the clash with our heroes from Georgetown.  Special thanks to casual Notre Dame alum 'KatieND1' and Notre Dame blog Rakes of Mallow for providing the answers to our penetrating questions.  KatieND1 and Rakes of Mallow, this Coors Light is for you.  Actually, KatieND1 may prefer this beverage.  Onto the Q&A...

       Harangody not quite 5 foot nothin', 100 and nothin'.  via SMH

CH:  Who will be a bigger flop at the next level: Jimmy Clausen or Luke Harangody?

KatieND1:
Without a doubt Clausen. expectations are crazy high, too high. Plus he's a little shit with no real leadership skills and a giant ego. Kind of like Brady Quinn, but with no heart or work ethic.

If Harangody stays healthy, he'll make an impact with some team. Although the last few games with Gody out, the Ewing Theory has been on display full force.

Rakes of Mallow:
Seems like it would be unlikely that Harangody could be considered a flop, considering he's not even projected as a first round draft pick. I think Clausen will be fine, although it's always sketchy projecting any quarterback to the NFL.

Other than Harangody, who should the Hoyas be worried about on Saturday?

KatieND1: 
I wouldn't worry about Harangody too much if he's still on the bench which is likely.

Tim Abromaitis has been ridiculous this year. I think I read that he's scored double-digits in all but 3 games. He's consistent outside and fast. The freshman coming off the bench (Cooley and Broghammer) have also been solid in Gody's absence.

Rakes of Mallow:
The combination of Ben Hansbrough, Tory Jackson and Tim Abromaitis have all been playing well, and it'll be interesting to see how they try to match up with Freeman and Wright.  Abro's probably got the highest upside of anyone in the group, as he's shooting 49% from three and also finding his way to the rim more and more each game.  He's got two years of eligibility left after this year and could turn into a special player.

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This feature would be a lot easier to write if our enemies over at Card Chronicle would be as good at blogging as their head coach is at paying players and bending women over tables in restaurants.  Unfortunately, we have just been alerted that we won't be getting the answers to our questions because the guys over at that blog have been too busy over the past week to get to them.  Too busy? In Louisville?  What, was the barn running out of hay?  Come on!  

Where amazing happens.  via cache4.asset-cache.net

We here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON have been doing this feature for every single game of the Hoyas season, and there have been only two schools that didn't send answers to our questions.  The first school to earn our eternal disdain was Savannah State, though we chalked that up to the fact that they had probably just received the internet and/or never witnessed anything quite like the Phenomenon before and were scared.  But Louisville is a different story.  The folks at Card Chronicle responded to our inquiry last week saying they would be happy to participate, and yet here I sit trying to fill a blog post feature rooted in a back and forth Q&A yet I HAVE NO ANSWERS.  WHAT ARE YOU HIDING, CARD CHRONICLE!

More hatred for Louisville after The Jump: 

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Has there ever been a Georgetown squad quite like this one where, in mid-February, no one following the team can say with any degree of certainty how good they really are?  Is Georgetown the team that lost to ODU and Rutgers?  Is Georgetown the team that beat Duke and Villanova?  Unfortunately we here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON are also having a difficult time figuring Georgetown out.  Some think the Hoyas are destined for Indianapolis, others are checking out potentially casual 1st round NIT sites.  One thing we are united on, however, is our unanimous disdain for Syracuse.  Ahead of our second battle with the Orange at Verizon on Thursday night, we're once again going head-to-head with Troy Nunes is An Absolute Magician, the greatest Syracuse blog on the interweb to bring you everything you ever wanted to know about our bitter rivals.  After you're done reading this, check THIS out for our responses to some of their questions.  Troy Nunes, this Coors Light is for you.

CH: What happened to Georgetown at the Carrier Dome? How was ‘Cuse able to weather that initial 14-0 spurt and then dominate the rest of the game?

Syracuse seems to have developed a knack for either playing poorly at first and taking over late or establishing themselves early and then breaking down later. You guys got the former. I don't know if SU plays better when they've got the odds stacked against them or what but they seem to respond much better when the game is close than when they've got a comfortable lead.

Once SU took the lead and the crowd got into it, the momentum-meter has swung irreversibly in Syracuse's favor. I would assume your fans will do something similiar, but, I guess we'll see.

Ever since ‘Field of Dreams,' every man has enjoyed a nice game of catch with his father. And I suppose hoops players enjoy a nice game of 1-on-1 with their dads. Be honest: getting matching FAMILY FOREVER tattoos and talking to your dad multiple times in the week is disturbing and wrong, right?

How else would we know that Leo and Andy Rautins are related? It's not like anyone ever mentions it during a Syracuse broadcast. Ever. Thankfully, no broadcaster is so lazy as to repeat the same ten "interesting bits of info" each and every game. I'm sure that won't happen at all during this game. Nope. Not at all.

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I know what you're thinking.  It's Rutgers!  No problem!  Easy win!  But we here at the GLOBAL PHENOMENON know better than to look beyond the quality of our opponent because we know that Georgetown is capable of losing to anyone, especially facing an omen such as playing on Valentine's Day against a team with Scarlet in its name.  In order to stave off the impending disastrous defeat, once again we are bringing you everything you need to know about Rutgers.  Special thanks to our friends at Protect R Turf and On The Banks of the Raritan for once again answering our penetrating questions HERE and HERE. Fellas, this Coors Light is for you. 

CH:  Were you pleased that the entire cast of Jersey Shore re-upped for Season 2? I was kind of hoping they'd get an entire new group of guidos and guidettes and start fresh. Thoughts?

PRT:
I'm just completely shocked that they only held out for more money from MTV. I figured they'd wait for lifetime supplies of glowsticks, hair gel, and tanning vouchers before signing on for Season 2.  I'm ok with bringing back the old crew. From what I've heard they're probably not coming back to Seaside Heights, and will be headed for a different locale. They should send them to a place like Green Bay, Wisconsin, or Knoxville, Tennessee; let's see what the locals there think of them. Snookie might not be the only one getting knocked out.

OBR:
I'm fine with another go-round with the original crew.  I can do without Snooki and I see J-Woww getting fat.  A better idea might be to do a Jersey Shore winter show.  Have you ever seen the Seaside Heights winter denizens?  It's a sad place to be.  It looks like the cast of any random Cops show filmed in Florida made its way up for the cheap winter rentals.  Alcoholism, crack addicts, etc.  Now that's a situation.

After yet another dismal year in New Brunswick, is there any chance that Fred Hill is the head coach at Rutgers next season?

In my honest opinion there's no way that Rutgers can bring back Hill for his final year. Fred Hill's Big East mark currently stands at 10-53. Are we supposed to get excited about 2 wins in Big East play? Is that considered progress? This team is too talented and at times has quit on Hill during games (see the quotes after the Villanova game), a sure sign that a change is needed in Piscataway.

Not unless the Scarlet Knights win the Big East Tournament and make an appearance in the Sweet Sixteen.  It looks like a couple of teams in the conference may be looking for new head coaches (St. Johns, DePaul, and possibly Notre Dame) in the near future.  This school needs a change.  Hill isn't a bad guy, but this job was simply too much for a first-time head coach.  Someone with experience building programs is needed at RU.

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We here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON have not made our affection for Katy Perry a secret.  It should come as no surprise then, that given Casual Hoya's clear influence over the team's performance on the court, that the Jekyll & Hyde Hoyas seem to embody some of her lyrics:

So after the thrilling win against Duke, the stink bomb against USF, and the rousing win over Villanova propelled by a rabid student body demanding headbands, the Hoya faithful are reasonably worried about the team will come out and handle what is at best a mediocre Providence Frairs team.  As usual, we're bringing you behind enemy lines to tell you everything you need to know about our next opponent.  Special thanks to our friends at The Friar Blog for providing answers to our penetrating questions.  When you're done reading his answers, check out this link for our answers to some of their questions.  Friar Blog, this Coors Light is for you.

'Sleeping with Providence' after The Jump:

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The Georgetown - Villanova rivalry rolls on, and with barbs flying between the two schools this week on the GLOBAL PHENOMENON,  perhaps it's suitable that the apocalypse is apparently headed to the DC area just in time for Saturday's game.  Special thanks to our guys over at I Bleed Blue and White, the most scintillating Nova blog on the internet, for once again agreeing to do battle with us.  We also engaged the Villanova Viewpoint in an additional Q&A, so be sure to check 'em both out to see our responses to some of their questions.  With our Corona sponsorship now out the window after the debacle against USF, we're switching gears to something we hope goes down a bit easier.  Nova buddies, this Coors light is for you. And twins!

CH:  During the game at the Wachovia Center, Nova praised its Women's Cross Country Team numerous times, through an incredibly long video montage as well as a halftime ceremony. Do you actually give a sh-t about Women's Cross Country?

It's funny. I love women. But I'd rather watch paint dry than actually sit through a women's sporting event. Even the UConn women's team, as dominant as they are, is a painful, painful experience. I've got a younger sister who is a field hockey player. I'm sure you can imagine the thoughts that go through my head while I watch that travesty of a sport.

So yeah, cross-country? I guess I'll take the title, but I'm not sure it's something I'm bragging about to rivals. Or I'd at least would have to have had 3 drinks of Ireland's finest.

The Wachovia Center serves beer throughout the game, unlike the Verizon Center which shuts off service 5 minutes into the second half. They are both Aramark serviced buildings, why do they serve beer longer? I propose they do so because more beer is required to make Nova girls look attractive. Please comment.

Whatever gets the job done I say. Just for the record, we at Villanova refer to going out at Georgetown as "Goin Hoggin." I'm sure they've got great personalities. Stay the course, friend.

Transfer applications to Georgetown are due March 1, do you need us to look over your essays or anything?

Just need a few ideas from a Hoya on what needs to be done to get in. I was thinking about writing about how to properly take advantage of a mistress in The Oval Office. I mean, that has to work for me just like it worked for Willy Clinton. Right?

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