SUAthletics.com
Atlanta is in the past.
Friday night’s 79-41 win over Holy Family marked the new beginning for Syracuse basketball. It’s not only a fresh season, but a new chapter for the entire program. The ACC logo is on the court and the back of the jerseys, and one of the players wearing the Syracuse uniform is freshman Tyler Ennis.
Ennis takes over as starting point guard after the departure of Michael Carter-Williams, and all eyes are on how he handles the role. Early returns are good. The freshman from Canada finished with impressive numbers against the Eagles. He had 12 points and was 4-for-7 shooting, including a three. He was also three of four from the free throw line. One of the critiques MCW had in his Syracuse career was turnovers and shooting. Ennis added three assists and only had two turnovers in his 18 minutes on the court.
Ennis is the key to the puzzle because he’ll help make the offense go, and so much responsibility will be given to a freshman. Heading into the game, he was confident and ready to immediately make a positive impact in front of more than 8,000 fans at the Dome.
“Practice has pretty much been getting guys into the right spots. Making them know that the pass is coming. Making them know what kind of passes I throw. Just getting everyone comfortable with playing with me.”
That’s one of the benefits of the exhibition and non-conference games. It gives the players time in game action versus practice to learn how to play with each other. It helps them learn what type of player the other one is.
There is one more exhibition game for this bunch to learn how to work and play together tomorrow against Ryerson. The season officially kicks off Friday night against Cornell, and everyone is excited to see how Ennis drives the bus.
Posted: Austin Pollack
