Orange hoops fall short in defending Colgate’s three-pointers
Orange hoops fall short in defending Colgate’s three-pointers
Syracuse men’s basketball struggled to keep up with their New York state rival Colgate, falling 80-68. Last year’s matchup brought about the same results with Colgate winning 100-85.
Syracuse center Jesse Edwards snagged the tip-off ball and quickly passed it over to freshman guard Judah Mintz for an easy field goal within the first 30 seconds of play.
Mintz went on to score a career-high 20 total points and nabbed four defensive rebounds.
“Obviously we didn’t win, so I didn’t do enough,” Mintz said. “I don’t think I had an awful performance, but I feel like it was mediocre.”
In the middle of the second half, Mintz stepped back from the Colgate defender, leaving him on the floor, and swished an easy three-pointer into the net. The crowd roared with cheering, hoping to turn the game around.
It didn’t.
Colgate guard Oliver Lynch-Daniels broke the early 5-5 tie with a swishing 3-point shot in five minutes of play. The Raiders would then go on to maintain the lead for almost 80% of the first half.
Syracuse gave up 11 three-pointers in the first half with almost half of them coming from Colgate’s Tucker Richardson (5-7).
The Orange mainly played zone defense which proved ineffective with Richardson consistently shooting above the arc.
“I think that’s our best defense [zone],” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “I think that’s the way we can have a good season and win, but we have trouble playing Colgate no matter what.”
A Colgate super-fan sitting courtside claps in appreciation of his team's win over Syracuse on Tuesday in the JMA Wireless Dome.
Syracuse's Judah Mintz (3) acrobatically attempts a layup in his team's loss.
On the flip side, Syracuse also struggled offensively despite Mintz’s efforts. The team as a whole scored just eight of 25 three-pointers and recorded under 40% in field goals.
Coach Boeheim said his team’s defense did some good things, but their offense was horrendous.
“We can’t play that way,” Coach Boeheim said about attempting so many three-pointers. “We’re not good enough shooters from there.”
Edwards came into this game after recording an impressive double-double against Lehigh with 18 points and 11 rebounds. In tonight’s game, he put up 10 points with seven rebounds and five blocks.
With 2:11 left in the game, he utilized his height and slam-dunked the ball into the net. But, it was too little, too late.
Senior guard Joseph Girard III put up 14 points for the Orange and created momentum at times in the game.
Girard III was fouled by Colgate’s Oliver Lynch-Daniels, bringing him to the foul line with 16:37 remaining in the game. He went 2-2 in free throws and less than 30 seconds later, Girard III received a pass from Mintz and shot a three-pointer to shorten the deficit to 12 points.
“We never want to lose,” Girard III said. “But, it’s on all of us not just them [the younger players].”
Whenever Syracuse made an electrifying play, Colgate followed up with a play of their own.
Colgate forward Ryan Moffatt shot a wide-open three-point shot with 15:30 left in the second half. Less than one minute later, Richardson followed with another wide-open three-pointer creating the biggest deficit of the game – 18 points.
Up next, the Syracuse Orange face Northeastern (0-2) at the JMA Wireless Dome on Saturday at 4 p.m.
is a magazine, news and digital journalism graduate student and the Sports co-lead producer for The NewsHouse.
is a photographer for the Infodemic project.
