A quick take on Syracuse’s 90-46 win over Holy Cross in the first game of the Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational on Tuesday evening:
WHAT HAPPENED: Syracuse stifled Holy Cross defensively in the first half, holding the Crusaders to just one basket from 9:53 until 5:34. By that point, Syracuse had jumped out to a 36-17 lead, and the Orange cruised to its second straight win to start the season.
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ANALYSIS: One game after Jim Boeheim lamented his team’s effort on the glass, his group gave a more spirited effort, with a +12 margin on the boards. Everything was firing on all cylinders, as the Orange shot 57.9 percent from the field and 13-25 from beyond the arc. Syracuse also held Holy Cross to 30.9 percent shooting from the field and forced 14 turnovers. For the second game, Boeheim played all nine available scholarship players in his rotation, though it appears that Dajuan Coleman (1 point, 6 rebounds) will be used sparingly.
HERO: Tyler Lydon, who scored just two points in the opener against Colgate, finished second on the team with 17 points to go with six rebounds. Lydon did it from outside and out, and went 2-3 from downtown after misfiring on all of his attempts in the Colgate opener, as well as the two preseason games. Andrew White led all scorers with 19 points, canning 5 of his 10 shots from 3-point land.
ZERO: Holy Cross, a team that went to the NCAA Tournament last year despite a losing record, couldn’t get any production from its top two outside shooters, Malachi Alexander and Robert Champion, who combined for 4-17 shooting from beyond the arc.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse will next play Monmouth on Friday, Nov. 18 at 7:00 p.m. at the Carrier Dome.
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