A quick take on Syracuse’s 67-57 win against Wake Forest Wednesday night in SU’s first-ever appearance at Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C., the victory matching the school record of the 2011-12 team with a 20-0 start:
WHAT HAPPENED: Up 26-23 after a poor first half of shooting (12% at one point) in which the Orange went almost 9:00 without a FG and made just a pair of three-point baskets, the ‘Cuse broke open a close game (42-39) just under the halfway point of the second half to pull away for the win, handing Wake its first home defeat, and having an opportunity to go for 21-0 start Saturday night versus Duke in the Dome.
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ANALYSIS: On a night when the Syracuse outside shooting (36%) was uncharacteristically as cold as the unseasonably chilly weather outside “The Joel”, the Orange (20-0, 7-0) dominated on the glass at both ends (55-35 edge overall) for second chance opportunities on offense, and holding the Demon Deacons (14-7, 4-4) to one shot often on the defensive end. Baye Moussa Keita had five of the eight Orange blocked shots.
HERO: Once again the second half story of the Orange offense was Tyler Ennis, and all he did was play the entire 40 minutes even on a sore ankle he seemed to twist with under 5:00 to play. Ennis finished with 18 points, four assists, five rebounds and a steal.
ZERO: As in the point total scored by Trevor Cooney the first 38 minutes plus of the game, as he finished a 2-9 shooting night. Cooney’s all around hustle, however, was again on display with six rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse returns home Sat. night, Feb. 1, to play its most anticipated game of the season in front of a likely new on-campus record crowd of well over 35,000 against No. 16/17 Duke (17-4, 6-2). Game time: 6:30 p.m. ET / TV: ESPN.
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