A quick take on Syracuse’s 69-59 win against Louisville on Wednesday evening:
WHAT HAPPENED: An SU 8-0 run starting with 10 minutes left in the second half turned a 47-44 deficit into a 52-47 lead with 6:52 left. Rakeem Christmas was at the center of the run, scoring six of those points to rebound from a two game funk. The Orange would take full control of the game with a late 8-2 run, and a Tyler Roberson dunk with 4:34 left gave the Orange a 60-52 lead.
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ANALYSIS: Finally. After going winless against the four ranked opponents SU played this season (Michigan, Villanova, North Carolina and Duke), the Orange finally clipped the No. 12 Cardinals. While SU won’t be participating in the postseason this year, this win would’ve gone down as a signature win for its tournament resume. As for Louisville, they clearly missed starting guard Chris Jones, who was suspended indefinitely on Tuesday. Louisville has lost three of four after starting conference play 8-2.
HERO: Christmas was dominant, scoring 29 points on 9-10 shooting after he had scored just 18 points on 8-25 shooting against Duke and Boston College. Michael Gbinije continued his torrid play, finishing with 18 points, five rebounds and six assists.
ZERO: Wayne Blackshear, who came in averaging 10.9 points per game, went scoreless and fouled out with 5:16 left. After hitting his first 3-pointer of the game, Trevor Cooney missed his next nine shots, finishing 1-10 from the field.
WHAT’S NEXT: The Orange host Pitt on Sat., Feb. 21 at noon. TV: ACC Network.
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