Syracuse looked dead in the water against non-conference opponents to start the season, but after a dominant second half, the Orange conquered the Cornell Big Red 78-63 for their fifth consecutive win. That includes an impressive 42-0 record over Cornell under the direction of Jim Boeheim.
The early portion of the game was an eyesore for the Cuse. Cornell made three of its first four triples to take an 11-4 lead just four minutes in. On the other side, the Orange weren’t shooting poorly, but recorded only seven shots in the first seven minutes. That was large in part due to SU allowing Cornell to snag ten offensive boards in the first half. But then Joe Girard happened to revive the Cuse.
Girard tallied six of SU’s 13 makes in the first half, as well as half of the Orange’s six triples. His ten points in the final eight minutes of the first frame propelled a Syracuse comeback to the tune of a 23-12 burst. Judah Mintz and Maliq Brown contributed a few buckets during that stretch, which were pivotal in the absence of Jesse Edwards. The senior seemed fine all half and even stayed out of foul trouble but lacked in other substantial categories.
It was just the second time this season where Orange fans had every reason to be concerned about the senior. Outside of the Illinois loss, the Netherlands native had exceeded expectations. But without his presence down low, playing just 11 of the 20 first half minutes, Syracuse trailed 25-14 in the rebounding category. That being said, Brown picked up as much slack as was asked from him, scoring four points and snagging four boards in just eight minutes.
Harp on this team’s first half performance all you want, the Orange entered the break making four of their last five shots and looking much better on the defensive end. That led to arguably Syracuse’s best start to the second half this season.
Not only did SU claim its first lead of the game only thirty seconds into the final half, but it was courtesy of Bell, who was one of many underclassman that shined today. Couple that with unbelievable, hard-nosed and active defense, holding Cornell without a bucket for the first two minutes out of the halftime break, and Syracuse opened up the flood gates.
This backcourt connection was part of a 15-3 run for the Orange, where Syracuse held Cornell to 2-of-18 from the field and a measly 2-of-12 from downtown. On the other hand, Syracuse shot seven-of-13 and at one point, held the Big Red in a scoring drought for five minutes. It was the perfect storm of Mintz, Bell and Williams running the floor, while JG3 focused more on facilitating in transition in the second half.
Syracuse would create another run of 20-2, in which Cornell missed 21 of 22 shot attempts. The Big Red essentially stayed true to their motto of living and dying by the three, shooting a program-record 48 triples. While the Orange divvied out the workload. Bell and Williams tallied 18 combined points on 7-of-11 shooting, totaling 10 rebounds as a pair in the process. Girard scored only four points in the final 20 minutes and deferred to Edwards, who responded to a one-point first half with ten points, eight rebounds and five blocks in 15 second half minutes. Mintz stole a few passes and scored an equivalent seven in the last frame, just as he did in the first 20 minutes of play.
All five SU starters scored in double figures, with Girard leading the way with 19 points. Edwards finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds, his sixth double double, and third in as many games.
There wasn’t a lot to criticize in SU’s play today. The Orange caught the Big Red relying on the three ball and used it to their advantage out of the break. It’s one of those games where the Cuse need to find a way to translate that 20-2 run earlier in the game and get their forwards into a groove in the early going too. But in the grand scheme of this CNY rivalry, there is only one way to describe it…
…and Syracuse obliged.
