A quick take on Syracuse’s 58-53 loss to Louisville on Saturday afternoon:
WHAT HAPPENED: With 53 seconds left and the game tied at 48, Luke Hancock buried a baseline 3 to give Louisville control of the game. Russ Smith then hit a pair of free throws and Brandon Triche turned the ball over on the ensuing possession as Louisville got revenge for their Jan. 19 home loss to SU.
» What did you think of SU’s performance?
ANALYSIS: Syracuse is limping to the end of the regular season. They’ve lost three straight now to the top teams in the Big East and are eliminated from the possibility of winning the Big East regular season title. It came on an afternoon where neither team could shoot the ball. Louisville shot 36 percent from the field, while SU was at 35 percent. The Orange looked better on offense with more ball movement and better shot selection, but they simply couldn’t hit open shots.
HERO: Gorgui Dieng dominated the paint, pulling down 14 rebounds while adding 11 points. Russ Smith led the Cardinals with 18. As for Syraucse, who else but Mr. Consistent, CJ Fair? With Syracuse playing its most critical game to date, Fair took the most shots (20) and lead the team in points (19) and added six rebounds.
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ZERO: Peyton Siva just can’t play well against Syracuse. He was 0-9 from the field, missing all 8 of his shots and went scoreless. Triche was nearly unstoppable the first time these two teams met in January, with 23 points. He had no such luck against the Cardinals, shooting 2-11 from the field, and had almost as many turnovers (7) as points (8).
WHAT’S NEXT: The Orange will try to put an end to their losing streak when they host DePaul on March 6 at 6 p.m. at the Carrier Dome in the final home game of the season. TV: SNY.
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