A quick take on Syracuse’s 66-52 loss to Pittsburgh on a relatively balmy Saturday afternoon at the Carrier Dome:
WHAT HAPPENED: Tied at 45 with just over seven minutes left, Jamel Artis hit a 3-pointer to break the stalemate. That was the first basket of a 7-0 run for Pittsburgh that gave it control of the game. With the win, the Panthers swept the season series from the Orange despite a season record 28,696 on hand.
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ANALYSIS: The loss was reminiscent of Syracuse’s loss to Pitt earlier in the season when the two teams played close until late in the second half before the Panthers pulled away down the stretch. Defense was the name of the game on Saturday, with the Orange shooting 37 percent from the field and 7-26 from downtown. Pitt shot 46 percent from the field, but just 8-23 from beyond the arc. The Panthers overcame their poor outside shooting with 14 offensive rebounds leading to 12 second-chance points. Overall, the Orange was rebounded 43-23.
HERO: Tyler Lydon was SU’s only real offensive threat on Saturday, scoring a career-high 21 points off the bench on 8-12 shooting. James Robinson and Artis combined for 34 points.
ZERO: Malachi Richardson and Trevor Cooney, two of SU’s sharpshooters, were anything but, shooting a combined 2 for 19 from the field.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse gets a week off, next hosting NC State on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 2 p.m.
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