NEW YORK — Syracuse forward Kris Joseph stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists in SU’s 95-70 rout against St. John’s. He also contributed six offensive rebounds.
“I thought this was the most active he’s been all year,” Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. “He got on the boards, got a couple of offensive rebound baskets.”
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That helped Syracuse bounce back from a game when they were dominated on the boards by West Virginia 36-20. Against the Red Storm, Syracuse cleaned the glass 42 times to St. John’s 31.
Joseph’s aggression on the interior helped offset another poor outside shooting night. Joseph missed both of his 3-point attempts, dropping him to just 3-for-37 from downtown over his last eight games. Prior to Big East play, Joseph was shooting 42 percent from beyond the arc.
Still, Joseph has found a way to stay productive during his prolonged shooting slump.
Down 5-0 with 16:49 left in the first half, Joseph provided a steady presence to help the Orange take control of the game.
He found CJ Fair on a nice look for an open jumper to pull SU within one. Two plays later, Joseph slammed home a shot after he rebounded a Scoop Jardine miss. It gave SU a 10-7 lead, and the Orange would never look back.
It was a microcosm of the afternoon Joseph had.
“Those big plays let other big plays happen,” Joseph said. “We were in rhythm and flow of the game, and everything was fine after that.”