Orange Beat Old Big East Rival

Article and Photo By Katie Benoit

Washington, D.C. – The Syracuse Orange have put an end to the Georgetown Hoya’s undefeated run with an 86-79- comeback victory.  

"I thought that it was a great comeback effort," Syracuse Coach Jim Boeheim said.

The Orange trailed the Hoyas for the majority of game until Syracuse began to full court press. 

"They attacked us the right way," Boeheim said. "They did everything right, we just got a couple of steals on the press and we had a couple of good shots to get back in." 

Guard Tyus Battle hit multiple threes during the time that the Orange needed them the most.  

"Today the 3-point line worked for us," Boeheim said.

With less than four minutes to play Battle hit a three pointer to put the Orange within five points of the Hoyas.  Then with just 1:30 left, Battle hit another three, bringing the score to 69-67.  

"It just gives me that mega confidence and confidence is everything with basketball," Battle said about his clutch shooting.

Guard Frank Howard’s lay up tied the game 69-69 with 50 seconds remaining. Three missed shots in the final moments of the second half could have won the game for the Orange, but the game was sent to overtime instead.

Syracuse dominated overtime shooting 77 percent from the field, while Georgetown shot 33 percent.

Rivalry Renewed

Boeheim coached against Hoya’s head Coach Patrick Ewing when he was a Georgetown player. Ewing was a member of the team from 1981-1985, during the Pearl Washington era.

"He brought tremendous basketball ability and determination to the game. I always appreciated that he played like a warrior. That’s how you should play basketball," Boeheim said.

Last season Syracuse lost to the Hoyas 78-71.

The heated rivalry was one of the biggest in college basketball, but has died down a bit since Syracuse left the Big East.

"It was a great crowd. You know, it’s a lot like it used to be, there just wasn’t any blood on the floor," Boeheim said 

Game Leaders

Battle was Syracuse's leading scorer with 29 points for the game. Oshae Brissett recorded a double- double, scoring 25 points and grabbing 14 boards on the afternoon.

"I just put it on my shoulders to get the team going and I was able to that," Brissett said about his performance in the second half.

Hoya Jessie Govan was a Georgetown’s leading scorer with 21 points.

 Playing on The Road

This matchup was Syracuse’s first true road game of the season. Both prior away games were played in neutral arenas.

Last season Syracuse struggled on the road going 2-8. Boeheim expressed that playing on the road is tough but he has little worries about this season.

“It’s hard to play on the road. It’s very difficult because of a couple of different factors but its mostly how good the other team plays again, everyone plays a little better at home, but we have always been a good road team till last year, ” Boeheim said.

What’s Next

The Orange will take on the University of Buffalo Bulls Tuesday Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Carrier Dome.

The Bulls are 6-3 on the season.

Orange Remains Undefeated After Facing Colgate

Story and Photo by Erica Pieschke

Syracuse, N.Y. - Colgate Raiders did not have a chance against the Syracuse Orange Wednesday night with a final score of 79-39.

After a close win in overtime against Stony Brook on Sunday, the Orange came out determined to regain their confidence and continue their undefeated season. And that is exactly what they did.

“I wanted to make sure we came back ready to play and have a solid game plan,” head coach Quentin Hillsman said. “We stuck to it tonight and we had a good result.”

The Return of Colgate

These two teams have faced each other 13 times in SU history, but have not played in nearly six years against each other. After Wednesday night’s game, Syracuse held onto the title making their record 14-0 against Colgate.

Colgate fought hard but it was not enough to make it past Syracuse. Nia Ahart was the leading scorer for the Raiders, with nine points in the game.

First Half Take Down

Syracuse showed no mercy out of the gates, ending the first half 51-16. Kicking off the game, Digna Strautmane hit two quick shots and a three pointer, but her aggressive playing turned into her first, and only, foul of the night.

Isis Young was the leading scorer on the court in the double digits with ten points. Tiana Mangakahi and Miranda Drummond walked away from the first half with nine points each.

Show No Mercy

Heading into the second half, Syracuse continued to push the lead. Coach Hillsman said it is important to play and coach a complete game.

“You’ve got to coach and play the whole game. I want them to play clean basketball and they deserve to be coached every minute that they are on the floor,” Coach Hillsman said. “They’re going to keep pushing the ball and playing the play, I’m going to keep coaching until we’re done.”

And the Cuse continued to push hard until the final buzzer.

Fresh Faces Continue to Shine

With only one returning starter from last season, Gabby Cooper, the majority of the Syracuse team has never played together. Despite the lack of experience as a unit, this team shows signs of chemistry and success early.

As one of the four undefeated teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Orange have not let it go to their heads.

“We talk about it a little bit but it’s not our main focus. We just have to stick to what we do best,” guard Tiana Mangakahia said. “We do say let’s keep this winning streak going to have energy and pursuing what we want to do next.”

What’s Next

The Orange will host Drexel on Saturday December 9^th at 6pm for their last home game before heading on the road for 5 games.

Colgate will be home in Hamilton for their next game on Sunday December 10^th at noon against Brown.

Photos: Jimmy V Classic Syracuse vs. UConn

Syracuse Bounce Back With A Victory Against Rival Connecticut

Story by Ashley Burroughs

Photos by Zachary Staton

New York, N.Y. – Syracuse defeated Connecticut, 72-63, in the Jimmy V Classic in front of a packed crowd filled with Husky and Orange fans in Madison Square Garden.

"The story of the game was Matt Moyer had a huge game," head coach Jim Boheim said.  "He really struggled all year. He got offensive boards. He got three offensive rebound basket tips. He was a big difference in the game.”

All Eyes On Matt Moyer

Red-shirt freshman Moyer had a breakout game at Madison Square Garden. Moyer scored five points including his first three point shot of the season to give the Orange an early,11-6, lead in the first half.

"The thing that Coach told me was I can't go out there and make nothing happen," Moyer said. "I gotta be aggressive. It's one thing if you go out there and make mistakes. But you gotta go out there and try to do something.” 

Moyer had the Syracuse crowd and bench on their feet when he made a tip-slam off of a missed  right corner three point shot by Oshae Brisset to extend Syracuse's lead 18-13.

“Oshae shot it and I was thinking, 'Why is nobody blocking me out? Are you serious?' The ball came off and I think I boosted off somebody,” Moyer said. “I was, like, 'Whoa!' I slammed it in, I guess. The emotions just flowed out of me. This is a special place. Madison Square Garden. It's a special place.”

At the half Syracuse led, 40-29, Moyer had 10 points and three rebounds for the Orange. He was one-point shy of his career high of 11 points when the team played Toledo.

Moyer finished the game with a new career high of 18 points and eight rebounds. He shot 7-of-9 against the Huskies. 

"He's our teammate, so we're just so happy for him to play well and see good things going for him," Tyus Battle said. "And I know that really helped his confidence a lot."

The Orange Leading the Way

The Orange had two other players besides Moyer who were in double figures. Tyus Battle and Oshae Brissett combined for 38 points.

Battle led the team in scoring with 22 points on 8-of-18 shooting. 

Brissett had his fourth double-double of the season. He scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. 

In the second half, Battle hit back-to-back three point shots and a mid-range jumper that gave the Orange a 17 point lead but turnovers and fouls allowed the Huskies to chip away at the Orange. 

Connecticut was able to cut the deficit to 11-points, 60-51, with 8:57 left to go but Paschal Chukwu made a major defensive play. He blocked the shot and prevented the Huskies from getting within single digits. 

With 6:17 left to go, Chukwu fouled out the game and finished with six points and five rebounds.

Marek Dolezaj, forced to play center after Chukwu fouled out, made key plays down the stretch for the Orange. He stopped Connecticut's momentum with a steal that led to Brissett getting a dunk. 

Moyer added another tip-in dunk to extend the Orange’s lead, 67-57, but the Huskies continued to battle to cut the deficit.

Jalen Adams made a strong move to the basket and scored with 1:14 left to go to close the deficit, 68-61, but it wasn’t enough as the Orange was able to bounce back and get a win on the road.

Looking Ahead

The Orange are now 7-1 after bouncing back from its first loss to the number two seed, Kansas in the Miami.

Connecticut fell to 6-3. The Huskies lost to Arkansas and Michigan State prior to this game.

Syracuse will host Colgate (3-4) on Saturday at the Carrier Dome. The game will start at 2 p.m.

Colgate just lost to Binghamton on Saturday, 76-65, but will be on the road today facing Marist before coming to the Carrier Dome.