Instant Juice: Syracuse 92, Colgate 47

A quick take on Syracuse’s 92-47 win against Colgate:

WHAT HAPPENED: Syracuse started sluggish, holding just a 20-13 lead with 10:31 left in the first half. From there, SU’s full-court press completely shut down Colgate over the next three minutes. The Orange forced six straight turnovers on a 14-0 run, capped by a CJ Fair layup and a foul to put SU up 34-13 with 7:38 in the first half. James Southerland led the charge, with two steals and eight points. Waiters added 10 points in the first half, as the bench outscored the starters 34-18 and SU outscored Colgate 52-19 heading into intermission. The story remained the same in the second half, as Syracuse outscored the Raiders 40-28. The Orange defense was also impressive after it switched into its familiar zone, forcing 24 turnovers, 17 steals and eight blocks.

ANALYSIS: If there was a hangover from the news of allegations against associate coach Bernie Fine, Syracuse didn’t show it. But there was a media frenzy, as reporters from the New York Times, USA Today and CNN—among other outlets—were there before the game. Fine’s seat, normally right next to SU head coach Jim Boeheim, was left vacated, and players were seen tapping the chair before checking in or out. Gerry McNamara, promoted to assistant coach while Fine is out on administrative leave, assumed his normal seat deeper on the SU bench.

HERO: Dion Waiters led four different Syracuse players—Scoop Jardine (11), Southerland (14) and CJ Fair (13)—in double-digits with 16 points.

ZERO: Raiders forward Sterling Melville clearly doesn’t like playing in the Carrier Dome. In last year’s 100-43 loss to Syracuse, Melville went 0-for-6 from the field. Melville had another rough outing this year, going 0-for-8 and zero points. For Syracuse, Fab Melo, who has shown improvements in all facets of his game this season, scored just two points and four rebounds before fouling out with four minutes left in the game.

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About Wes Cheng 2907 Articles
Wes has worked for Rivals.com covering the New York Knicks, as well as for Scout.com covering Syracuse athletics. Wes has also been a contributing writer for the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), for SportsNet New York (SNY) as a news desk writer covering all of New York professional sports, and reported on the NBA and MLB for the New York Sportscene. A native of Long Island, New York, Wes graduated from Syracuse University in 2005 with a degree in journalism. Contact him at wes[at]sujuiceonline.com.