A quick take on Syracuse’s 84-70 win over Morehead State at the Carrier Dome on a frigid Saturday night:
WHAT HAPPENED: Lamontray Harris’ thunderous dunk with 16:23 left pulled the Eagles to within 43-40, slicing into a six-point halftime deficit. Elijah Hughes responded immediately with a layup plus a free throw, keying a 12-0 Orange run to give them a 55-40 lead with 13:39 to go. But it wasn’t until a twisting, spinning layup from Oshae Brissett with 1:13 left that gave the Orange a 80-68 that the game was finally put of of reach.
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ANALYSIS: It was a sluggish start for the Orange, as they committed 11 first half turnovers leading to 13 points for Morehead State. But Syracuse made a more concerted effort to attack the smaller Eagles in the second half, and were rewarded with 21 trips to the line as opposed to the Eagles’ four attempts. The Orange also secured the ball, turning the ball over just three times in the second half leading to only three points off turnovers. Still, Syracuse is still struggling to find its offensive rhythm with its starting point guard, Frank Howard, sidelined. SU shot just 40.3 percent from the field and 3-15 from downtown. The Orange also assisted on only 11 of its 28 field goals.
HERO: Tyus Battle shook off an 0-6 start from the field to lead the Orange with 23 points on 7-15 shooting. Brissett scored 15 of his 17 points in the first half and added 13 rebounds. Elijah Hughes rounded out SU’s ‘Big Three’ with 21 points to go with eight rebounds. Jordan Walker scored 24 points, including six three pointers, to lead the Eagles.
ZERO: Buddy Boeheim has struggled to start his SU career. Coming off a 1-11 performance against Eastern Washington in his collegiate debut, the freshman guard struggled again, hitting just 1 of his 7 attempts. He’s shooting just .091 percent through two games.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse heads down to Madison Square Garden to finish out the 2K Classic, playing Connecticut on Thursday at 7 p.m. TV: ESPN2.
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