Syracuse defeated Cornell 82-72 to snap a two-game losing streak after coming up short in the Legends Classic against Texas and Texas Tech, and the Orange improved to 4-2 with the win.
It would have been a tough pill to swallow if Syracuse had lost this game, as it hasn’t lost to the Big Red since 1968 and has now beaten them 44 straight times. Syracuse did enough down the stretch to close the game out, but the same flaws that have plagued the Orange all year were still an issue.
Elijah Moore and Donnie Freeman: A+
If it wasn’t for Elijah Moore, Syracuse would have suffered through another brutal performance from beyond the arc. The Orange are shooting just 25.7% from the three-point line as a team this season, and it was much of the same tonight besides Moore. He scored a career-high 19 points off the bench and made 5 of his 7 three-point attempts, while the rest of the roster combined to shoot 0-for-6.
Freshman Donnie Freeman was the team’s leading scorer in his best game of the season, dropping 23 points on 50% shooting from the field, and he also pulled down 12 rebounds for his third double-double this year. Freeman was aggressive in this game and attacked the paint while making all 7 of his free throw attempts. He didn’t reach double figures in scoring in the games against Texas and Texas Tech, but he looked more confident against Cornell and threw down the game-sealing dunk to punctuate the win.
Syracuse in the First 10 Minutes: F-
F- isn’t a real grade, but no mark could accurately describe how bad Syracuse was to open this game. The Orange let Cornell start the game on a 10-0 run and started 3-for-18 from the field. It didn’t matter if it was an easy layup inside or a contested three-pointer: there was a lid on the rim. After the Big Red earned its biggest lead of the game when it went up 14-2 in 7 minutes of action, the Orange finally started to put it together on offense and went into halftime with a 39-28 lead.
With ACC play not even started yet, slow starts like these are extremely concerning against lesser competition, and they don’t bode well for Syracuse’s long-term outlook if they fall into double-digit deficits to start every game.
Defense: C-
On paper, this looks like one of the Orange’s better defensive efforts this season. Cornell shot 40% from the field as a team, and 30% from the three-point line, but that doesn’t tell the full story. Syracuse gave up plenty of wide-open layups and there were too many plays where there was noticeable confusion about who was supposed to guard the Cornell player that had just scored.
The Big Red only scored 9 points off turnovers but had 23 fastbreak points, which means that the Orange weren’t hustling back and setting up their defense fast enough. Cornell took full advantage, and it’s what kept them in the game down the stretch. The numbers say that Syracuse has one of the weaker defenses in the ACC, and so does the eye test.
This is the type of game where the Orange should blow their opponent out of the water, but instead, they had to sweat for it, and they almost paid the price for their slow start. Against their next opponent, No. 7 Tennesee, they’ll have to be much more consistent on both sides of the ball to win.
