SYRACUSE, N.Y. – In a battle between the nation’s bottom two free-throw shooting teams, the inability to convert from the charity stripe was not the story on Wednesday.
Syracuse shot a season high 75% from the line on Wednesday to help them to a 76-62 victory over the Mercyhurst Lakers, improving to 7-4 on the season and rebounding from the loss to Hofstra on Saturday.
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The main headline heading into the game was that sophomore Donnie Freeman had been progressing in his return from injury, and there was a possibility for him to play this evening.
Even though Freeman would go through his entire warm-up routine, he would not suit up for the game.
So, Syracuse would turn to their other leader, as senior JJ Starling found the ball in his hands frequently at the beginning of the game. The Orange as a team began 5-of-7 from the field, with Starling responsible for seven of the squad’s first 11 points.
However, turnovers were plaguing the ’Cuse, and at the first media timeout, the Lakers only trailed by 1, with Syracuse leading it 11-10.
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Then, the physicality of the Orange on defense started to take over, and baskets became extremely hard to come by for Mercyhurst for the rest of the first half. The Lakers would only score 13 more points over the next 15 and a half minutes, shooting 32% from the field and being outrebounded by Syracuse 27 to 15.
At the same time, the Orange played this high level of defense without fouling, as Mercyhurst made just one free throw in the first 20 minutes of play.
The separation between the two teams came in the middle of the half, where Syracuse went on an 11-0 run and forced Mercyhurst to call a timeout with 8:52 remaining.
Over the course of the half, offensively, the Orange had a variety of scoring options as Starling, William Kyle, Nathan George, and Kiyan Anthony combined for 34 of Syracuse’s 39 first-half points. It was a real bounce-back game for George, who finished with 12 points after being held scoreless against Hofstra on Saturday.
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At the break, the ‘Cuse led by 16, with a 39-23 advantage.
The Syracuse offense continued to keep its foot on the gas in the second half, as it started 7-for-10 from the field with a lot of easy looks inside from Kyle and forward Sadiq White. Kyle recorded his third double-double of the season, and White would finish the game with 13 points and nine rebounds, one of the best performances in his freshman campaign.
The defense, however, was not nearly as strong as Mercyhurst’s offense clicked more in the second half. Led by sophomore guard Jake Lemelman, who had 18 second-half points, the Lakers’ offense shot 48% over the second 20 minutes and put up 39 points, actually outscoring Syracuse by two.
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However, the big lead that was created early was enough for the Orange to never really be in doubt. With both teams continuing to trade baskets for basically the entire second half, the Orange never led by more than 19 and never by less than 13.
But the lack of defense in the second half and the inability to put Mercyhurst away kept the starters in the game until the final whistle.
The Orange would finish the game with five scorers in double figures, and 46 of their 76 points coming from inside the paint.
A win for the ’Cuse, but a bizarre second half of basketball. What are your thoughts?
