Ask junior forward Vionca Murray about basketball rivalries, and she’ll look no further than teammate Erica Morrow. The two, from Francis Lewis High School and Murry Bergtraum High School, respectively, competed against each other in some of New York’s fiercest basketball matchups before their Syracuse days.

‘I remember it was the biggest game of the season,’ Murray said. ‘I always looked forward to that, we played it at Madison Square Garden, and it was pretty packed – it was the championship game.’

Morrow, too, recalls her high school days as a source for her biggest basketball grudge matches. But she may be responsible for the formation of a new rivalry for her college years.

Last season against Georgetown, Morrow drilled a 3-pointer with 25 seconds left to give the Orange a 68-67 victory over the Hoyas. This season, Georgetown snapped SU’s seven game win streak, despite 29 points from Morrow, with an 80-73 win over the Orange. The teams will face off again this Sunday at the Carrier Dome at 6 p.m.

‘Last year, we split the two games, and they took one from us this year at (their) home,’ Morrow said. ‘We’re just two really competitive ball clubs that go at each other every chance we get, so if you want to call it a rivalry, you could.’

Heading into this season, the all-time series between the two teams was tied at 24 games apiece. The team’s have alternated wins in every matchup since 2004, with the home team often gaining the advantage.

Despite the statistical gridlock, head coach Quentin Hillsman refuses to classify Georgetown and Syracuse as a rivalry game. ‘I don’t think you can base your life on revenge,’ Hillsman said of Georgetown following SU’s 87-79 loss to DePaul on Tuesday. ‘They won at their place and we have to win at our place.’

As the Syracuse program has grown in visibility and relevance in the women’s basketball scene, its matchup with Georgetown is becoming a grudge match.

Since 2000, three of the games have gone to overtime, while six others have the victor winning by six points or less.

‘When things go back and forth like that, people tend to label it a rivalry,’ Morrow said.

Given Syracuse’s current standing in the Big East, Sunday’s installment has a chance to enhance the competitive spirit between the teams. The Orange (15-10, 4-8 Big East) sits just two places behind the Hoyas (16-10, 6-7 Big East).

Winners of only one of its last five, the Orange is in crisis mode, while the Hoyas have also been struggling in the Big East. The game could be valuable for both teams to lean on with the Big East tournament and NCAA Tournament rapidly approaching.

‘We’re not going to make this a revenge thing,’ Hillsman said. ‘We’re going to make it a ‘have to win’ thing. We can’t get too out of character going into this game. We understand that it’s a big game and we have to win.’

Morrow agrees, citing the Georgetown game as essential for not only standings, but team psyche. But thinking about the magnitude of the men’s version of the rivalry is an entertaining prospect.

‘I think that’d be fun,’ Morrow said. ‘Fun for both teams and fun for the fans – you see how it goes when the men play (Georgetown), they get 30,000 at the Carrier Dome. If we could get 30,000 here for calling it a rivalry game then hey, we can call it whatever you want.’

ctorr@syr.edu

Published on February 19, 2009 at 12:00 pm