A quick take on Syracuse’s 76-50 blowout of Boston College at the Carrier Dome on Wednesday evening:
WHAT HAPPENED: With 7:58 minutes to go in the first half at Syracuse up by four points, Buddy Boeheim hit a 3-pointer, and followed it up with a pair of layups as part of a 10-0 run. Elijah Hughes capped the surge with a 3-pointer, which gave Syracuse a 21-7 lead. That was later followed by an 11-0 run that put SU up 36-12 with 1:52 before half, and Boston College would never recover. Things were so bad for the Eagles that they were single-handedly outscored by Boeheim after the first 20 minutes. The Eagles had 13 points on 0-14 shooting from 3-point land, while Boeheim scored 15 on 3-4 shooting from distance. Boston College picked it up offensively in the second half, but never seriously threatened the Orange, and Syracuse walked away with a rare ACC rout.
» Related: Syracuse basketball is still alive in a wide-open ACC
ANALYSIS: There is a top tier of ACC teams, headlined by Duke, Louisville, Florida State and Virginia. After that tier, there is a wide open race and Syracuse is right in the thick of it. With an upset victory over then-No. 18 Virginia (now unranked) over the weekend, and a second straight win on Wednesday against the hapless Eagles, the Orange improved to 3-3 in conference play. That puts them in a three-way tie for fifth place with Clemson and Georgia Tech. Syracuse plays at Virginia Tech and Notre Dame, two teams that bested them at home to start 2020, but road revenge in their next two games could put the Orange in a position to compete for a first-round ACC Tournament bye in a parity-rich conference.
HERO: Boeheim paced all scorers with 22 points, while Hughes finished with 19 points, five assists and four rebounds. Dolezaj chipped in with a double-double (10 points, 11 rebounds).
ZERO: You could really name the entire Boston College roster, with no player in double figures. The Eagles started 0-18 from downtown, though they did finished 6-30. They shot 32.8 percent from the field and only got to the free throw line eight times.
WHAT’S NEXT: Syracuse plays at Virginia Tech on Saturday at 12 p.m. TV: RSN.
For more Syracuse coverage, Like our Facebook page, follow us @TheJuiceOnline and listen to our podcast.
