Syracuse basketball breaks losing streak with win over Pitt 89-71
Syracuse basketball breaks losing streak with win over Pitt 89-71
“What a difference a half makes,” Syracuse head coach Felisha Legette-Jack said.
Coming off their first home loss of the season and second consecutive loss, Syracuse basketball upped their performance in the second half to beat ACC rival Pittsburgh by double-digits on Thursday evening in the JMA Wireless Dome.
The Orange are now .500 in conference play, while the Panthers fall to 0-3.
On average, the Panthers hold their opponents to 65 points per game, but Syracuse slid right past it with 89 total points to Pitt’s 71.
Guard Dyaisha Fair came into the game leading the Orange in scoring, averaging 18.7 points per game, but she didn’t play like herself in the first half.
Fair tallied just two total points in the first half, with the lone field goal coming in the second quarter. She was unsuccessful from above the arc, shooting 0-4 in the first half.
But in the second half, Fair found her groove and turned her performance around, ending the night as SU’s points leader with 24.
“This young lady [Dyaisha Fair] is a pro,” Legette-Jack said. “The challenge was to be a complete player. Be a pro. And she clearly showed that she is.”
SU luckily had shooting guard and hard hat recipient Georgia Woolley to knock down some shots for the Orange from start to finish. Woolley tied her season-high in points with back-to-back games scoring 23 points.
“That was just my mindset, just compete,” Woolley said. “Go after everything and just keep that same mindset.”
In the first quarter alone, Woolley scored 10 points, making 66.7% from the field. With five minutes to go until the first quarter’s closure, Woolley stole the ball twice in a matter of 20 seconds resulting in layups by Kyra Wood and Fair.
Woolley ended the first half with four steals and two assists.
A 19-2 run gave Pitt the 39-33 lead heading into halftime.
Legette-Jack said her mother is struggling with Alzheimer’s and it’s been hard not being with her as much, so she told her players at halftime that she needed them to be the best versions of themselves going into the second half.
“I said, ‘I demand that you respect my mother enough to give your best effort,’” Legette-Jack said.
And they did, Legette-Jack said.
Star Syracuse guard Dyaisha Fair looks for open teammates from the corner of the court on Thursday.
SU forward Kyra Wood and shooting guard Georgia Woolley defend Pitt's Avery Strickland at the JMA Wireless Dome.
After being tied at 45 a piece in the third quarter, Pitt quickly grabbed the lead back with a three from forward Gabby Hutcherson. But with less than four minutes on the clock, Fair came back down the court to hit her first three-pointer of the game to tie it back up at 48.
Fair followed up with another 3-point shot to clench the lead for SU. Half of Fair’s points came from three-pointers, with all four coming from the second half.
The Orange went into the final quarter with a 57-51 lead.
The final quarter consisted of Syracuse dominating the court offensively and defensively.
Orange forward Dariauna Lewis knocked down back-to-back-to-back shots, all assisted by Fair. She was shy of a double-double with 12 total points and eight rebounds, all defensive.
Forward Kyra Wood was successful in an And-1 opportunity with 5:30 on the clock, making a two-point shot and her foul shot. Less than 30 seconds later, Lewis snagged a defensive rebound and quickly tossed the ball down to Wood, who gently laid up the ball to extend SU’s lead 72-61.
Next, the Syracuse Orange travels to South Carolina to take on Clemson (11-5) Sunday at 2 p.m. Clemson is also 2-2 in ACC play.
is a magazine, news and digital journalism graduate student and the Sports co-lead producer for The NewsHouse.
is a graduate student studying broadcast and digital journalism.
