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Three days ago, Syracuse was tested in a game it should’ve easily handled. Not only did the Orange let Cornell stick around, but they trailed from the second quarter until the middle of the fourth. SU let the Big Red dictate the pace, something which hasn’t happened often this season. The Orange trailed at halftime for the first time in 2023-24 and faced a deficit as large as 14 points before storming back for their largest comeback under head coach Felisha Legette-Jack.

Thursday against Saint Francis, SU made sure it didn’t have the same issues again. The Orange jumped on the Red Flash early, scoring the first 23 points as Saint Francis missed its first 13 shots.

Syracuse (10-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) outscored Saint Francis (1-11, 0-0 Northeast Conference) 26-6 in the first quarter en route to a blowout, 85-43 win in its final nonconference game of the regular season. SU’s swarming defense stymied the Red Flash to just 27% shooting from the field. Georgia Woolley led the Orange with 19 points while Dyaisha Fair added 17 off the bench as five Syracuse players finished in double figures. For the first time since 2018-19, the Orange have won seven straight contests.

Trailing in the fourth quarter Monday, Legette-Jack implemented a press to speed Cornell up. It worked, with the Big Red turning the ball over eight times in the fourth quarter as the Orange came out with a 78-71 win.

This time, Syracuse wasted no time implementing the press, using it on the first defensive possession of the game. Julianna Gibson drove the lane, but an errant pass to the wing fell out of bounds.

“It was intentional, we’re trying to figure out who we are,” Legette-Jack said postgame. “…We put it out there so we can get an idea of that third rotation and fourth rotation…It just happened to work well for us today.”

A couple of possessions later, Saint Francis’s Yanessa Boyd entered the paint, pressured by Alyssa Latham. The freshman ripped the ball right out of Boyd’s hands and went the other way before finishing over Boyd to put Syracuse up 6-0.

SU continued to be aggressive on the offensive end with Fair and Rice scoring buckets to help it jump out to a 16-0 advantage. The defensive pressure persisted as well, forcing the Red Flash into a 10-second violation.

As Saint Francis still looked to put up its first points of the game, Saniaa Wilson rejected Fanta Daffe down low, leading to a Fair 3-pointer on the other end.

Syracuse’s aggressive defense helped it to a 20-point advantage at the end of the first quarter. Despite going through a 1-for-10 stretch on offense, SU maintained its large advantage in the second quarter through its defense.

The Orange forced eight first-half turnovers from Saint Francis and blocked five shots while holding Saint Francis to just 6-for-35 from the field. SU went on a 9-0 run toward the end of the second quarter, helping it to a 45-15 halftime lead, its largest of the season and the fewest points allowed through 20 minutes of play.

“One thing I know for sure, this is an unselfish team. I know for sure that this is a team that will rise as one,” Legette-Jack said.

With its large lead, Syracuse opted not to utilize a full-court press in the third quarter but still blitzed ball screens while trying to jump passing lanes. Rice and Woolley both picked up steals in the quarter.

Throughout the game, Syracuse held Saint Francis’ leading scorer Kendall Carruthers quiet. The freshman came in as its only player averaging double figures, but Carruthers shot the ball just eight times, finishing with as many points as turnovers (seven).

The Red Flash didn’t have a single player score 10 points, with Destini Ward scoring nine, but went just 4-for-21 from the field, including four misses from 3.

Saint Francis did have its best scoring quarter of the game in the third. The Red Flash also knocked down their first 3-pointer through Marissa Shelton two minutes into the half to make it a 31-point game.

Syracuse started to go deep into its bench late in the third quarter. After a timeout with 3:30 remaining, the Orange put in an all-bench lineup highlighted by Sophie Burrows, Lexi McNabb and Wilson. Burrows promptly moved right and scored on a drive for her first points of the game, extending SU’s lead to 59-26.

The Orange slowed down the pace offensively in the third quarter, shooting 7-for-21 and getting outscored 17-16. Though they still held a 29-point advantage heading into the fourth.

Legette-Jack opted to put her starters into the game to start the fourth. The final quarter was highlighted by SU’s two top scores hitting milestones. First, Fair hit a turnaround mid-range jumper for her 15th point of the game. It was her 2,898th career point, putting Fair at No. 20 on the All-Time NCAA scoring list, passing Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist. And on Syracuse’s next offensive possession, Woolley drained her third 3-pointer of the game for her 1,000th career point.

Even with Fair and Woolley’s scoring accolades, Syracuse’s success against Saint Francis started on the defensive end. The Orange allowed the second-fewest points they have all season, giving them a boost as they head into conference play.

“I say it’s like four seasons, starting with preseason, then nonconference and the third season is conference,” Legette-Jack said. “Our goal is to get to the fourth season, which is postseason play. And how did you do that? They told us that we have to go through the ACC and here we come.”

Published on December 21, 2023 at 12:45 pm

Contact Zak: zakwolf784254@gmail.com | @ZakWolf22