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Entering its penultimate nonconference game at Binghamton, Syracuse was amid its worst stretch of the season. First, it fell 57-45 to Texas A&M in the SEC/ACC Challenge. Four days later, SU was demolished by then-No. 10 Notre Dame 93-62.

Despite sticking with ND in the first half, the Orange were boat raced in the final 20 minutes, led by a 16-point third quarter disparity. This marked Syracuse’s largest margin of defeat and its most points given up in 2024.

Versus the Fighting Irish, SU played without leading rebounder Kyra Wood for much of the contest. Wood only logged 10 minutes in the first half and missed the rest of the game with an undisclosed injury, allowing ND to dominate on the glass.

But after a 10-day layoff, Wednesday provided a get-right opportunity for SU against Binghamton. And Syracuse took advantage. The Orange shot lights out from the field, finishing shooting 50.0%. They also benefited from sloppy play from Binghamton, allowing them to turn an 11-point lead into a 30-point advantage in the second half.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (5-6, 0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) 87-60 win over Binghamton (6-5, 0-0 America East):

Varejão’s resurgence

In Syracuse’s most recent game against Notre Dame, center Izabel Varejão missed most of the game with constant headaches, according to head coach Felisha Legette-Jack.

Versus Binghamton, Varejão began her third straight game on the bench, but was still effective. She entered after only two minutes, and immediately drilled a layup to put Syracuse up 8-2 early. On the next possession, the sixth-year senior converted a jumper to push her to four points on the day.

With 5:27 remaining in the opening quarter, she cashed in another jumper. Though she didn’t hit any shots for the rest of the quarter, she began to establish herself on the defensive end, notching three blocks in the first quarter alone.

With 6:51 remaining in the second, Varejão completed a three-point play to push her total to nine points. She tacked on once more in the third, extending Syracuse’s lead to 52-41 midway through the third.

Varejão finished the contest with 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks, providing a much-needed spark to SU on both ends.

SU’s defense forces mistakes

Syracuse entered its bout with the Bearcats ranked 70th in the country with 9.6 steals per game, per HerHoopStats. On the other hand, Binghamton coughs up the ball at a high rate, averaging 17.6 turnovers per contest.

So, SU forced the Bearcats to make poor decisions throughout the game. On Binghamton’s first possession, Camryn Fauria drove to the rim, but SU forced the ball out of bounds. Thirty seconds later, the Bearcats stepped out of bounds, turning the ball over again.

Toward the end of the quarter, the Bearcats had two consecutive shots blocked. Soon after, Fauria knocked the ball out of play, giving it to Syracuse. On their next time down the court, Dominique Camp forced a five-second violation by Kaia Goode.

To start the second quarter, Weltz heaved the ball down the court, which Camp picked off, leading to a foul on Wood on the other end. The Bearcats continued to play sloppily down the stretch, finishing with 11 turnovers in the first half.

In the second half, it was more of the same. To start, Burrows forced a turnover, drove down the court, and converted a contested layup. In total, the Orange forced 23 turnovers, caused by the Bearcats’ sloppy play.

Wood’s skid continues

In Syracuse’s first nine games of the season, Wood was a steady fixture in its lineup, averaging 11.4 points and 7.1 rebounds. Against Notre Dame, the senior’s injury led to a 54-38 ND rebounding advantage — the biggest disparity SU has surrendered all year.

Wood remained in Syracuse’s starting lineup against Binghamton, but was largely ineffective. In previous games, she would consistently find space under the basket, leading to easy layups. Though she was nowhere to be seen for much of the game against Binghamton.

The senior didn’t notch a point until two minutes left in the first quarter. After Syracuse missed multiple shots, Sophie Burrows found Wood under the bucket for a simple layup. Though this was her only one of two made shots in the first half, finishing the half with four points.

With six minutes remaining in the third, Wood notched her fifth and sixth points of the day on a second-chance attempt and converted a layup with 5:11 left in the third quarter. However, her presence was not felt for the rest of the game, spending the remaining time on the bench.

Strong 3-point shooting

Syracuse has been one of the worst teams in the country from 3-point range this year. Though on Wednesday, it shot far better from beyond the arc.

First, Georgia Woolley drilled a 3 at the 4:34 mark of the first, putting it ahead 19-12. Then, SU was propelled by an unlikely contributor — freshman Madeline Potts. Potts had only sank 2-of-6 triples prior to the game against Binghamton.

With three minutes left in the first, the Bearcats cut Syracuse’s lead to 19-17. Potts got the points right back, drilling a corner triple to push SU’s advantage to five. Then, to close the quarter, the Australian hit another look from distance to give the Orange a 27-17 lead at the break. SU ended the first 20 minutes shooting 4-of-10 from beyond the arc.

Syracuse failed to hit a triple until four minutes remaining in the third, again from Potts. Then, SU embarked on a 23-3 third-quarter run, propelled by made triples. First, Woolley canned an attempt from the right corner, and Burrows followed a few possessions later with her first of the contest.

The Orange sank eight 3-point attempts in the contest, leading to their blowout victory over the Bearcats.

Published on December 18, 2024 at 9:36 pm

Contact Noah: njnussba@syr.edu | @ Noahnuss99