A quick take on Syracuse’s 92-56 win against Manhattan:
WHAT HAPPENED: Syracuse trailed 8-5 with 15:21 left in the first half after Michael Alvarado hit a 3-pointer. From there, SU went on a 27-3 run capped by a Rakeem Christmas layup to give the Orange a 32-11 lead with 7:36 left. Kris Joseph led the charge on that run, scoring eight straight points on a pair of 3s and a breakaway slam, and the Orange never relinquished a double-digit lead after that point. Syracuse was dominant defensively in opening half, forcing 16 Jaspers turnovers which led to 22 points as SU went into the break up 54-26. The Orange was stagnant to start the second half, as it waited four minutes for its first points of the half, and didn’t add a field goal until Fab Melo’s tip in with 13:30 left (leaving the Carrier Dome crowd standing and clapping the whole time). The Orange missed its first 10 shots coming out of half, but maintained its substantial lead by getting to the line. SU was already in the bonus with 15:49 left in the game and outscored Manhattan 43-30 in the second half.
ANALYSIS: As expected, the Orange had no problem with Manhattan in its second game of the season. SU dominated the Jaspers defensively as the Orange forced 28 turnovers including 10 blocks and 15 steals. Offensively, the Orange was just as impressive, shooting 50 percent from the field and 10 of 22 from beyond the arc. The Jaspers committed 25 fouls, leading to 25 Syracuse free throw attempts. Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim emptied his bench with the exception of Trevor Cooney, who Boeheim announced after the game would redshirt.
HERO: Joseph finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, showing no effects of a sore knee that had bothered him in the preseason. He also became the 55th player in program history to score 1,000 points. He was one of five SU players in double digits, as Brandon Triche (12), Fab Melo (11 points, nine rebounds), Dion Waiters (17 points, five assists) and James Southerland (15 points, six rebounds) also enjoyed productive nights offensively.
ZERO: George Beamon, the Jaspers’ best scorer averaged 16.3 points last year and started this season with a 15 point performance against NJIT. Beamon scored 14 points, but shot just 4 of 12 from the field. Then again, his teammates weren’t much better, as the Jaspers shot 31.6 percent from the field.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “I knew I was four points away from 1,000 and I just wanted to get them as quickly as possible.” – Joseph on passing the 1,000 point plateau in his SU career.