A quick take on Syracuse’s 81-63 win over Boston College on Wednesday evening at the Carrier Dome:
WHAT HAPPENED: After Ky Bowman’s free throws gave Boston College a 20-19 lead with 11:14 left in the first half, Oshae Brissett responded with a jumper followed by a 3-pointer. That keyed a 8-0 run to give the Orange a 27-20 lead with 8:33 before intermission. An 11-0 run to begin the second half gave the Orange a 58-40 lead with 15:24 to go, and the Orange led by double-digits the rest of the way.
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ANALYSIS: On any given night in the ACC, the Orange will need two of its ‘Big 3’ of Frank Howard, Brissett and Tyus Battle to perform to par in order to win. Wednesday night, the Orange had standout performances from all three, the first time that’s happened in conference play, resulting in a surprisingly easy win against the upstart Eagles. The trio combined for 55 points, and also had help from the front court, with Paschual Chukwu (14 points, seven rebounds) and Marek Dolezaj (12 points, eight rebounds) also putting up gaudy offensive numbers. That allowed the Orange to shoot 60.4 percent from the field and 7-16 from downtown in a rare dominant performance for an offense that has struggled to score throughout most of the season.
HERO: Though there were plenty of heroes to choose from, Howard distinguished himself from the pack. Howard stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, six assists and three rebounds, but the most impressive stat was zero, as in zero turnovers.
ZERO: Matt Moyer rolled his left ankle just five minutes into the game, and didn’t play the rest of the game, returning to the sideline in a boot. The Orange already have depth issues, and without Moyer available, only have seven scholarship players. He will be reevaluated tomorrow.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse travels to Pittsburgh on Saturday, Jan. 27 at 4 p.m. to face the Panthers. TV: ACC Network Extra.
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