A quick take on Syracuse’s 69-57 loss to St. John’s in the “Battle for New York”:
WHAT HAPPENED: Phil Green’s personal 11-2 run with under four minutes left turned a 55-52 St. John’s deficit into a 63-57 lead with 58 seconds left. It was a frustrating final four minutes for Syracuse, which combined for four turnovers in the final four minutes. St. John’s held SU to just one basket in the final 5:34 of the game.
» Related: Rakeem Christmas as go-to guy rarity for Syracuse
ANALYSIS: Inexperience and poor shooting did the Orange in again. While the Orange was able to erase an 8-point deficit midway through the second half, SU suffered an awful collapse in the final five minutes. Aside from the aforementioned turnovers, the Orange also missed five of six shots during the Johnnies’ run. Orange possessions mostly ended up with limited time on the shot clock, and the ball in Ron Patterson’s hands. While the sophomore wasn’t afraid to shoot, he was part of a 3-22 effort from downtown. The Orange shot 39 percent from the field, and went 10-20 from the line.
HERO: D’Angelo Harrison led St. John’s with 24 points, as the Johnnies won for the first time at the Carrier Dome since 1999. His effort also ended Syracuse’s 55-game home winning streak against non-conference opponents. But it was Greene who put the game out of reach with 18 points as the Red Storm won on the efforts of its two seniors. Rakeem Christmas led Syracuse with 15 points and 15 rebounds.
ZERO: Kaleb Joseph was pulled by Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim midway through the second half when the Orange fell behind by eight points, and never returned to the game. He finished with just three points on 1-5 shooting. Fellow starting guard Trevor Cooney continues to struggle. He finished with two points on 1-6 shooting, and even when he had a 3-pointer fall, it was waived off by an offensive foul. Patterson took most of SU’s critical shots of the game, and had little to show for it, finishing with five points on 2-9 (1-7 from 3) shooting.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse will have a week off before it hosts Louisiana Tech on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 4 p.m.
For more Syracuse coverage, Like our Facebook page and follow us @TheJuiceOnline.
